Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas on Wednesday responded to US President Donald Trump’s proposal that the US control Gaza and encourage permanent emigration of its residents.

“We will never allow harm to our nation’s rights, for which we have fought for many decades, and for which we have sacrificed much to fulfill,” he said.

“These statements express a gross violation of international law, and the peace and stability in the region will not be accomplished without the founding of a Palestinian state with eastern Jerusalem as its capital, within the borders of June 4, 1967, on the basis of a two-state solution.”

Abbas also stressed that, “The Palestinian nation will never give up on its land, rights, and holy places, and that the Gaza Strip is an integral part of the land of the State of Palestine, alongside the West Bank and eastern Jerusalem which is occupied since 1967.”

“The Palestinians’ legitimate rights are not up for negotiation, and the Palestine Liberation Organization is the legitimate and only representative of the Palestinian nation, and no one else has the right to make decisions about the future of the Palestinian nation.”

Abbas also called on United Nations Secretary General António Guterres and the UN Security Council to “take responsibility and act urgently to protect the Palestinian nation and preserve its rights, including the right to self-determination and remaining in their homeland.

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