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Abbas Accuses Israel of Stealing ‘Land and Water’ in Palestine

Abbas shakes hands with Levits ahead of their meeting in Ramallah on Wednesday (Reuters)
Abbas shakes hands with Levits ahead of their meeting in Ramallah on Wednesday (Reuters)
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Abbas Accuses Israel of Stealing ‘Land and Water’ in Palestine

Abbas shakes hands with Levits ahead of their meeting in Ramallah on Wednesday (Reuters)
Abbas shakes hands with Levits ahead of their meeting in Ramallah on Wednesday (Reuters)

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has called on the European Union (EU) and its member states to refrain from dealing with any Israeli government that doesn’t recognize the two-state solution on the basis of international legitimacy.

Abbas further called on Wednesday abstaining from dealing with any Israeli government that doesn’t renounce violence and terrorism.

This seems like a preemptive war against the upcoming right-wing Israeli government led by Benjamin Netanyahu.

Speaking before the 4th Arab Water Conference, Abbas accused Israel of stealing Palestinian land and water.

Abbas said during a joint press conference with Latvian President Egils Levits at the presidency headquarters in Ramallah that there is a lack of an Israeli partner who believes in the two-state solution, and renounces violence and terrorism.

He highlighted that these are the principles Palestine is committed to.

The Palestinian president further urged all countries that haven’t yet recognized the State of Palestine to do so in order to protect the two-state solution and the right of the Palestinians to self-determination.

The president's demands coincided with Netanyahu’s attempts to form a right-wing government.

Meanwhile, Ziad Abu Amr, a member of the PLO Executive Committee, delivered Abbas’ speech at the 4th Arab Water Conference.

The conference was organized by Palestine at the Arab League in Cairo and held under the theme "Arab water security for life, development, and peace".

He said that the occupation state is stealing the land, and building settlements on it and is stealing the water and selling it to the Palestinians.

The Palestinian president gave the Dead Sea as an example of trespassing, noting that it is collapsing year after year.

He spoke about the consequences of the Israeli seizure of the water resources, noting that the Palestinian share stands at an average of 87 liters per day and doesn’t exceed 20 liters in some communities compared to 580 liters per day for the Israeli settler.

Abbas considered water as an “Arab national security matter” that requires a comprehensive and unified Arab strategy against the occupation.

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Arab World

Syria, Jordan, US Agree to Back Ceasefire Enforcement in Sweida

This handout picture released by the Jordanian Foreign Ministry shows (L to R) Syria's interim Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani, Jordan's Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi, and US special envoy for Syria Tom Barrack meeting in Amman on August 12, 2025. (Jordanian Foreign Ministry / AFP)
This handout picture released by the Jordanian Foreign Ministry shows (L to R) Syria's interim Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani, Jordan's Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi, and US special envoy for Syria Tom Barrack meeting in Amman on August 12, 2025. (Jordanian Foreign Ministry / AFP)
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Syria, Jordan, US Agree to Back Ceasefire Enforcement in Sweida

This handout picture released by the Jordanian Foreign Ministry shows (L to R) Syria's interim Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani, Jordan's Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi, and US special envoy for Syria Tom Barrack meeting in Amman on August 12, 2025. (Jordanian Foreign Ministry / AFP)
This handout picture released by the Jordanian Foreign Ministry shows (L to R) Syria's interim Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani, Jordan's Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi, and US special envoy for Syria Tom Barrack meeting in Amman on August 12, 2025. (Jordanian Foreign Ministry / AFP)

Syria, Jordan and the United States agreed on Tuesday to form a joint task force to support Damascus’ efforts to uphold a ceasefire in the Sweida province in southern Syria and end the crisis there, the three countries said in a joint statement.

The agreement was reached during talks in Jordan between Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani, his Jordanian counterpart Ayman Safadi, and US special envoy to Syria Tom Barrack, the statement said.

The meeting discussed ways to help rebuild Syria “on foundations that guarantee its security, stability, sovereignty, unity and non-interference in its internal affairs.”

Jordan and the United States welcomed Damascus’ steps, including “full investigations and holding all perpetrators of crimes and violations in Sweida accountable” and its readiness to cooperate with relevant UN agencies in the probe, the Syrian foreign ministry said.

They also praised Syria’s moves to expand humanitarian aid access to all areas of Sweida, restore disrupted services, start community reconciliation, and promote civil peace.

Both countries reiterated their “full solidarity” with Syria’s security, stability, sovereignty and territorial integrity. Sweida and its communities were an “integral part of Syria” whose residents’ rights must be preserved in the rebuilding process, the statement said.

The three sides agreed to meet again in the coming weeks to continue Tuesday’s discussions.

Barrack said on X: “Syria remains steadfastly committed to a united process that honors and protects all its constituencies, fostering a shared future for the Syrian people despite intervening forces seeking to disrupt and displace its communities.”

“Delivering justice and ending impunity are paramount to achieving lasting peace,” he stressed.

“The Syrian government has pledged to utilize all resources to hold perpetrators of the Sweida atrocities accountable, ensuring no one escapes justice for violations against its citizens,” he added. “Syria will fully cooperate with the UN to investigate these crimes.”

During a meeting with Shaibani, Safadi reaffirmed Jordan’s rejection of foreign interference in Syria and its support for the country’s security, sovereignty and territorial integrity, according to a Jordanian foreign ministry statement.

The FMs condemned repeated Israeli air strikes and incursions into Syria, calling them a “flagrant violation of international law” that threatened regional stability.

They discussed efforts to cement the Sweida truce, agreed last month after violence between armed groups in the mainly Druze province killed hundreds.

On X, Shaibani said Syria was committed to protecting Sweida’s Druze, Bedouin and Christian residents and to countering any sectarian or inciting rhetoric. “Our Druze people are an integral part of Syria... we reject any attempt to marginalize them under any pretext,” he said.

He pledged accountability for all violations in Sweida “regardless of the party involved,” saying justice was essential to building a state governed by law.