Israel’s Ben-Gvir calls for immediate overthrow of Palestinian Authority

JERUSALEM/ANKARA

Far-right Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir called Sunday for the immediate overthrow of the Ramallah-based Palestinian Authority (PA).

In a post on his X account, Ben-Gvir urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to “bring immediate operative measures to the next cabinet meeting to dismantle the Palestinian Authority."

"This must be the response to the terrorist Abu Mazen's [Mahmoud Abbas] fantasies of a ‘Palestinian state’ crushing the terror authority he heads," he claimed.

Media reports emerged that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas was planning to announce the transformation of the PA into a state at the upcoming UN General Assembly meetings in September.

The Palestinian Foreign Ministry, for its part, denounced Ben-Gvir’s call as a “continuation of Israel’s genocide, forced displacement, and annexation policies in Gaza and the occupied West Bank.”

A ministry statement said such incitement “targets the PA as the nucleus of the Palestinian state and forms part of ongoing Israeli crimes aimed at erasing the Palestinian cause and the rights of our people.”

These calls “fall within Israel’s continuous coup against international law, UN resolutions, and signed agreements,” it added.

Israel has been critical of Palestinian efforts to gain international recognition of statehood based on the 1967 borders.

Israeli officials have repeatedly called for sanctions against the PA, accusing it of incitement against Israel. Netanyahu and other leaders reject Palestinian statehood, claiming it threatens Israel’s existence.

Last month, a UN conference on the two-state solution called for full recognition of a Palestinian state and UN membership, a move opposed by Israel and the US. Currently, 148 UN member states recognize Palestine, which was declared in exile in 1988.

Israel has been facing mounting outrage over its deadly war on Gaza, where more than 61,400 people have been killed since October 2023. The military campaign has devastated the enclave and brought it to the verge of famine.

Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.