Abbas to Arab journalists: “All of Zionism is based on negating the Palestinians… Netanyahu does not believe in peace”

Official PA TV, speech by PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas before Arab and Palestinian journalists

PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas: “We told them: First of all a political solution, and afterwards an economic solution (i.e., refers to proposals made at US-led conference in Bahrain in June 2019 focusing on economic aspects of US President Donald Trump's Middle East peace plan). I do not need economy, I need respect. I need security for my people. I need a state. And only then does this state need aid, and you will be blessed if you provide it to us…

All of Zionism is based on negating the Palestinians. In other words, there are no Palestinians – [it’s] us or you. Accordingly, [Theodor] Herzl (i.e., founder of modern Zionism) said: ‘A land without a people for a people without a land’ (sic., PMW could find no evidence that this was said by Herzl). He knew that there is a people that is more numerous than all of the Jews in the world (sic., world Jewry greatly outnumbered the Arabs living in the land of Israel), but one day he said: ‘A land without a people for a people without a land.’ In other words, what is the meaning? There are Palestinians that we need to eliminate from Palestine so that Palestine will become a land without a people for a people without a land, and that is how this slogan was created. Now, in 1993 [then Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak] Rabin recognized that the PLO is the Palestinian people’s sole legitimate representative. Afterwards of course came [acting Israeli Prime Minister] Shimon Peres and he was silent about it. [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu arrived. Honestly, Netanyahu does not believe in peace. He does not believe in peace. And therefore he wants to negate the Palestinians’ existence – physically if he could, and if not then by any means. The main thing is to negate the Palestinians’ existence. But we are living in our land and not leaving!”