Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas warned Thursday that he will disband his Palestinian Authority if there was no Israeli movement toward renewing peace talks after Israel’s elections on January 22.
Abbas, in an interview with the Israeli daily Haaretz, said that if such a situation arises he will hand full responsibility for the occupied West Bank to the Israeli government.
“If there is no progress even after the election I will take the phone and call (Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu,” Abbas said.
“I’ll tell him…Sit in the chair here instead of me, take the keys, and you will be responsible for the Palestinian Authority.”
“Once the new government in Israel is in place, Netanyahu will have to decide — yes or no,” Abbas said in the interview published on the paper’s website late Thursday.
Talks between the two sides have been on hold since September 2010, with the Palestinians insisting on a settlement freeze before returning to the negotiating table and the Israelis insisting on no preconditions.
Abbas warns of disbanding PA if no peace talks
