Palestinian leader demands Hamas release remaining hostages

Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas demanded Hamas disarm, relinquish power and release the hostages.

The Palestinian leader said that by letting the hostages go, Hamas would ‘shut down’ Israel’s ‘excuses’ to continue the war that began after the terror group’s massacre on Oct. 7, 2023.

‘The first priority is to stop the war of extermination in Gaza. It must be stopped – hundreds are being killed every day,’ Abbas said, according to the Times of Israel. ‘Why don’t you hand over the hostages?’ 

The Palestinian Authority president also apparently called Hamas ‘sons of dogs’ during his address.

Abbas was speaking at a meeting of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) Central Council, which is expected to select a deputy who could be a successor to the 89-year-old PA president.

This marks the first time since the start of the war in Gaza that Abbas has called on Hamas to transfer its authority to the PA, according to Reuters, but he has done so in the past. 

It is unclear whether Hamas will comply with Abbas’ demand, despite his assertion that it could help end the war and save Palestinian lives in Gaza. Hamas and the PA have been at odds for nearly two decades, since the terror organization seized power in 2006 and pushed the PA out of Gaza.

The international community has pushed for the PA to play a role in a ‘day after’ plan for Gaza, but Israel has not been receptive to this idea.

The Israeli government and the Trump administration have long criticized the PA’s ‘pay for slay’ policy, which Abbas reformed in February of this year. The policy saw payments go to family members of Palestinians who were imprisoned, killed or injured in connection with attacks against Israelis.

‘This is a new fraudulent trick by the Palestinian Authority, which intends to continue making payments to terrorists and their families through other payment channels,’ the Israeli Foreign Ministry said at the time, according to Axios.