Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas urges Hamas to relinquish Gaza control

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has called on Hamas to relinquish its control over the Gaza Strip, hand over its weapons to the Palestinian Authority, release prisoners held in Gaza, and transform itself into a political party.

Addressing a meeting in Ramallah, Abbas said that Hamas has committed crimes in the Gaza Strip under the pretext of resisting Israel’s occupation — most notably, the detention of prisoners. “I am paying the price for this, our people are paying the price — not Israel. So my brothers, just hand them back to Israel,” he stated.

Abbas also criticized Hamas over the October 7, 2023 attack, saying the group’s actions gave Israel a pretext to destroy Gaza. “This adventurism provided Israel the excuse it needed,” he said.

Hamas, which opposes Abbas’s peace efforts with Israel, has accused the Palestinian Authority of cracking down on resistance factions in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

Mahmoud Abbas also urged world leaders to pressure Israel to end the war in Gaza, withdraw its forces, and halt all settlement activities. He added that peace cannot be achieved until a Palestinian state is established based on the pre-1967 borders.