Palestine invites UN Security Council members to visit Gaza

Permanent Observer of State of Palestine to the United Nations Riyad Mansour has called on members of the UN Security Council to join Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on a visit to the Gaza Strip to personally assess the scale of the tragedy in the enclave.

President Abbas expressed his intention, as well as the intention of the Palestinian leadership, to travel to Gaza, Caliber.Az reports, citing Russian media.

He urged world leaders to join him and support his initiative.

"I call on the Security Council to participate in a visit to the Gaza Strip to see firsthand the horrors our people are experiencing," he said during a Security Council meeting on the Middle East peace process.

Additionally, the Palestinian diplomat urged the Security Council to assist President Abbas to reach the Gaza Strip" and to "work towards ending the genocide and crimes" being committed against the Palestinian people.

meanwhile, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's adviser on international relations and special envoy Riyadh al-Maliki stated that Israel refused to allow President Abbas to visit the Gaza Strip, highlighting the ongoing reality of the Israeli occupation of the area.

 "We did not seek permission; we announced that the president would be visiting Gaza. Israel then responded, saying they would not allow President Mahmoud Abbas to enter Gaza. This clearly indicates that Gaza is under Israeli military occupation. However, we do not ask for permission from Israeli occupiers for the Palestinian president to visit any part of Palestinian territory. This is self-evident," the politician stated.

 At the same time, he noted that while the Palestinian authorities acknowledge the reality of the occupation, they refuse to accept it as the status quo.

“President Abbas was aware in advance that Israel would not permit him to enter Gaza. This is why he sought support and security assurances from the UN Security Council—to counter Israel's refusal,” al-Maliki added.

President Abbas announced his plan to visit Gaza on August 15.