Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas told the United Nations General Assembly on Friday that Israel is “no longer a partner for peace” and is “destroying” the possibility for an end to the conflict between them, a day after Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid told the international forum that he supported a return to the long-stagnant peace process.
“Israel does not believe in peace. Israel believes in enforcing the status quo,” Abbas said. He said that Israel had “premeditated and deliberate policies” that were “destroying the two-state solution.”
Therefore, the Palestinian leader said, “we no longer have an Israeli partner to whom we can talk.”
Abbas, however, also welcomed Lapid’s call for a return to negotiations as a “positive development,” adding that Israel must end all unilateral action in Palestinian territory in order to facilitate such a move.
“The true test of the credibility and seriousness of this stance is for the Israeli government to return to the negotiation table immediately,” he said.