PA’s Abbas urges pressure on Israel to halt settlement expansion and settler terrorism

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has called for international pressure on Israel to stop settlement expansion and “settler terrorism” in the occupied West Bank, warning that such actions would destroy the two-state solution.

Abbas made the remarks on Monday during a joint press conference with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis at the presidential headquarters in Ramallah, in the central occupied West Bank, according to the official Palestinian news agency WAFA.

He stressed the need to pressure the Israeli government to stop “the systematic undermining of Palestinian national institutions and the erosion of the two-state solution through settlement expansion and settler violence”. Abbas also called for the release of Palestinian tax revenues withheld by Israel and for an end to attacks on Christian and Muslim holy sites.

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The withheld funds consist of taxes levied on goods imported into the Palestinian territories, either from Israel or through border crossings controlled by Tel Aviv. These revenues are collected by Israel on behalf of the Palestinian Authority.

Since 2019, Israel has deducted sums from these funds under various pretexts and, around six months ago, halted their transfer altogether. The move has pushed the Palestinian Authority into what officials describe as an unprecedented financial crisis.

In this context, Abbas said the Palestinian leadership remains ready to work with US President Donald Trump, mediators and international partners to achieve a just peace based on international law and the Arab Peace Initiative.

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