Mahmoud Abbas: The people of Palestine have the right to defend themselves
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas speaks in response to Hamas's attacks on Israel, Reuters reports. He said, according to the WAFA news agency, that the Palestinian people have the right to defend themselves against "the terror of settlers and occupying troops." The statement was made during an extraordinary meeting of Palestinian Authority heads in Ramallah in the occupied West Bank. On Hamas channels, Saturday's attacks have been presented as the "al-Aqsa operation" and described as a defense of the mosque of the same name. Hamas military leader Muhammad Deif said in a pre-recorded message that the aim is for "the enemy to understand that the time for their irresponsible rampage has run out." The Al Asqa Mosque is located on the Temple Mount in central Jerusalem and is symbolically important to all sides in the conflict. Last spring, it was stormed by Israeli police."