Palestinian Authority President: Hamas will have no role in governing Gaza after war

2025-09-25 19:11:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

Palestinian Authority President: Hamas will have no role in governing Gaza after

Speaking via video link after the United States denied him a visa, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas told world leaders that his people reject the October 2023 attack carried out by Hamas on Israel.

Addressing the United Nations, Abbas said that this radical group will have no role in governing the Gaza Strip after the war is over and must hand over its weapons to his administration.

"The dawn of freedom will come ," he told the Palestinians.

Abbas told the UN General Assembly that Palestinians in Gaza are facing a war of genocide, destruction, famine and displacement by Israel.

His speech came a day before Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to address the UN.

During the short speech, Abbas outlined his vision for a Palestinian state in the occupied West Bank and Gaza. The two-state solution has gained support after a number of countries - including key US allies - announced their recognition of the Palestinian state this week.

However, Netanyahu's government opposes the creation of a Palestinian state.

Israeli troops control most of the Gaza Strip. Netanyahu has said Israel will retain security control over the territory after Hamas is defeated and has rejected the idea that the Palestinian Authority would have any role. Some of his ministers are also calling on the Israeli government to annex the West Bank, where Abbas's administration is based in small parts of the territory.

"There can be no justice if Palestine is not free ," Abbas said.

He said the Palestinian Authority is ready to take full responsibility for governance and security in Gaza. Abbas added that Hamas will have no role in governance and must hand over its weapons to the Palestinian Authority.

Hamas has agreed to give up control of Gaza but has rejected Israel's demand that it disarm, saying it has the right to resist Israeli occupation.

Abbas said that Israel's campaign in Gaza is not aggression, it is a war crime and a crime against humanity.

A number of experts around the world have accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza. Israel denies the charges and blames Hamas for the deaths and destruction of the territory.

Abbas thanked world leaders for their support for the Palestinians during the war in Gaza, adding that recent recognitions of Palestinian statehood have given his people hope for peace and an end to the conflict. He welcomed the decisions of France, the United Kingdom and Canada to recognize the Palestinian state, calling on other countries to do the same.

However, he added that symbolic recognition is not enough to address the current problem.

"It is time for the international community to act with justice for the Palestinian people, so that they have their legitimate rights to expel the occupation and not remain hostages to Israel's policies, which deny our rights and continue the injustice against us, continue the oppression and aggression ," Abbas said.

During the October 7, 2023, attack, Hamas killed nearly 1,200 people in Israel and kidnapped 251 others. Meanwhile, the Israeli campaign in Gaza has killed more than 65,000 people and injured more than 167,000 others, according to the Ministry of Health in the territory - figures considered reliable by the UN./ CNA