PA Denounces Ben-Gvir Over Calls to Arrest Abbas, Target PA Leaders if UN Backs Statehood

Overview

• The Palestinian Authority condemned National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir after he urged the arrest of Mahmoud Abbas and advocated targeted assassinations of senior PA officials if the UN recognizes a Palestinian state.
• The PA said it will hold the Israeli government fully responsible for what it called dangerous incitement and asked the United States and other international actors to pressure Israel to halt the rhetoric.
• Ben-Gvir delivered the remarks at an Otzma Yehudit faction meeting as he criticized a proposal under UN Security Council discussion that mentions a path to a Palestinian state.
• The US-drafted text, as reported, cites a credible pathway to Palestinian self-determination and statehood tied to Gaza redevelopment and reforms within the Palestinian Authority.
• Ben-Gvir dismissed Palestinian nationhood as a project for a fabricated people and linked statehood advocates to terrorists, while Hamas and other factions rejected the UN draft as an attempt to impose external control over Gaza.