Blinken meets Mahmoud Abbas in surprise visit to West Bank
Blinken has visited Israel since the start of the war, but this was his first trip to the West Bank.
US State Secretary Antony Blinken met with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in a surprise visit to West Bank on Sunday.
Blinken has arrived in the West Bank with Israel’s offensive on Gaza has entered into Day 30 with the Palestinian death toll nearing 10,000.
The meeting between Blinken and Mahmoud Abbas was held in the West Bank city of Ramallah, the de facto Palestinian capital, on Blinken’s second visit to the region since the Oct. 7 attacks.
Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas has decried Israel’s “genocide” in the Gaza Strip amid Israel’s bombardment, in remarks to visiting US State Secretary Antony Blinken, reports AFP.
“I have no words to describe the genocide and destruction suffered by our Palestinian people in Gaza at the hands of Israel’s war machine, with no regard for the principles of international law,” Abbas said to Blinken in Ramallah, in remarks carried by official Palestinian news agency Wafa.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has told US Secretary of State Antony Blinken that there must be an “immediate ceasefire” and humanitarian aid allowed to enter the Gaza Strip, his spokesperson Nabil Abu Rudeineh told Reuters.
A handout photo from the meeting was provided by the Palestinian Authority’s press office (PPO).
Blinken has visited Israel since the start of the war, but this was his first to the West Bank.
