Palestine has ‘jurisdiction' over Gaza, West Bank: Abbas

Palestine has the “jurisdiction” over the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said on Sunday.

“Palestine has the jurisdiction over Gaza and the West Bank, including Jerusalem, and will continue to carry out its responsibilities,” Abbas said during a meeting with head of the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council, Rashad Mohammed al-Alimi, on the sidelines of the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.

Abbas renewed his call for ending Israeli attacks against Palestinians, a complete withdrawal from Gaza, reconstruction and holding a political process “that ends the occupation and achieves security, stability and peace for all in the region.”

The meeting between the two sides took up developments in the Palestinian territories and the region as well as bilateral ties between the two sides, the state news agency Wafa reported.

Abbas is scheduled to deliver a speech before the UN General Assembly on Sept. 26.

Israel has continued a brutal offensive on Gaza following a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group Hamas on Oct. 7 last year, despite a UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate cease-fire.

More than 41,400 people, mostly women and children, have since been killed and more than 95,800 injured, according to local health authorities.

The Israeli onslaught has displaced almost the entire population of the territory amid an ongoing blockade that has led to severe shortages of food, clean water, and medicine.

Israel faces accusations of genocide at the International Court of Justice for its actions in Gaza.