Addressing a special meeting of the World Economic Forum hosted by Saudi Arabia, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas expressed serious concerns on Sunday regarding a potential Israeli attack on the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah.
During his speech, Abbas emphasized the ramifications of such an attack, stating that it could lead to a catastrophic displacement of Gaza’s population.
He stressed the importance of ending aggression, providing necessary humanitarian aid to the population, and rejecting any displacement of Palestinians from their homeland, be it Gaza or the West Bank.
In addition, Abbas appealed to European nations to acknowledge the State of Palestine and grant it full membership in the United Nations.
Advocating for a political solution, he called for the unification of the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, and Jerusalem into an independent Palestinian state through an international conference, a proposal that has been ongoing since October 7, 2023.
Expressing apprehensions, Abbas also voiced concerns that post the Gaza conflict, Israel might seek to relocate Palestinians from the West Bank to Jordan.
Notably, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu approved a ground operation plan for Rafah on Thursday but has not initiated any military movement yet.
Rafah has emerged as a safe haven for over 1.4 million Palestinians who have been displaced from the northern and central Gaza Strip due to the prolonged hostilities between Hamas and Israel spanning over six months.