Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas plans to use his speech at the upcoming U.N. General Assembly to declare a "Palestinian state under occupation," the London-based Arab newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat reported Wednesday.
A senior official with the Palestine Liberation Organization said Abbas has briefed PLO officials of his intention to declare statehood at the world leader's forum during his speech, scheduled for Sept. 27.
The official noted that Abbas' declaration means to stress that statehood process launched with the 1993 Oslo Accords has effectively ended and that it was time to shelve the concept of the "Palestinian Authority" in favor of the "state of Palestine."
An Israeli source said that a unilateral move of this nature on Abbas' part would effectively mean the Palestinian Authority's withdrawal from the Oslo Accords.
PLO Executive Committee member Wasel Abu Yousef told Asharq Al-Awsat that despite Abbas' plan, the move has yet to be finalized.
He noted that the PLO had already agreed in principle to declare an end to the 25-year-old Oslo process, but has yet to set up the necessary state institutions to take over for the Palestinian Authority, which will disband in the wake of such a move.
Over the years, Abbas has repeatedly threatened to exit the Oslo Accords and stop the Palestinian security forces' coordination with their Israeli counterparts.
While he has never followed through on his threat, recent months have seen the Palestinian leader become increasingly furious with U.S. President Donald Trump over the latter's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital and the relocation of the U.S. Embassy there.
Abbas has refused to engage with Trump's Middle East envoys and has accused Trump of being "grossly biased" toward Israel, saying the U.S. could no longer serve as an impartial mediator in the Middle East peace talks.
He was further infuriated by the White House's announcement that given his position, the Trump administration may go over his head and push ahead with its peace plan, with the support of the moderate Persian Gulf states.
Abbas has also admitted that Ramallah was actively trying to torpedo Egypt's efforts to broker a long-term cease-fire between Israel and Hamas, the terrorist group that rules the Gaza Strip.
The Palestinian leader claims that Hamas, which ousted his Fatah-led government from Gaza in 2007 in a military coup, lacks the authority to hold any type of negotiations with Israel.
Ramallah sources said that Abbas may pursue the move at the U.N. to prevent his exclusion from any deal involving Gaza's future.
