Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas has no intention of dissolving the Palestinian Authority, although it has been rendered largely powerless by Israel, he told a newspaper on Monday.
In an interview published a day before a senior Palestinian delegation is to deliver a letter from Abbas to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the Palestinian leader said breaking up the authority he heads would not happen.
“There are many reasons which have contributed to the weakening of the Palestinian Authority, but its dissolution is out of the question,” Abbas told the Palestinian daily Al-Ayyam.
In the letter, a copy of which was seen by AFP on Sunday, Abbas says Israel’s actions have stripped the Palestinian Authority of its “raison d’etre,” creating a reality which cannot continue.
“As a result of actions taken by successive Israeli governments, the Palestinian National Authority no longer has any authority, and no meaningful jurisdiction in the political, economic, territorial and security spheres,” he wrote.
