Palestinian Leaders Warn Against Smotrich's Call to Block Abbas's Return to Ramallah

Palestinian officials from the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and the PLO have expressed serious concern over Israeli Minister Bezalel Smotrich's demand to prevent Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas from returning to Ramallah after his visit to Turkey and meeting with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Ahmad Majdalani, Secretary-General of the Popular Front and PLO Executive Committee member, described these threats as more than election rhetoric, emphasizing they represent a deliberate policy by the Israeli government. Majdalani accused right-wing Israeli figures, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Smotrich, of escalating hostile and inciting discourse against the Palestinian people and leadership to gain electoral advantage ahead of upcoming elections.

He warned that these statements are translating into concrete actions on the ground, such as expanded settlement construction, annexation moves, and ethnic cleansing efforts in the West Bank. Majdalani also highlighted Smotrich's initiatives to delay and seize Palestinian clearance revenues, aiming to weaken the Palestinian Authority financially. Regarding Smotrich's comments about "correcting the Oslo track," Majdalani said Netanyahu is politically vulnerable and is reshaping priorities by exploiting anti-Palestinian state rhetoric and attempting to block Abbas from exercising his leadership roles in Ramallah and the PLO.