ROME, December 13, 2024 – President Mahmoud Abbas met on Friday with his Italian counterpart, Sergio Mattarella, in Rome, where the two leaders discussed the latest developments concerning the Palestinian issue in light of the ongoing Israeli aggression.

Upon his arrival at the Presidential Palace, President Abbas was welcomed by an honor guard before being received by President Mattarella and senior Italian officials.

During the meeting, President Abbas briefed the Italian President on the situation in Palestine, with particular focus on the severe humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip resulting from the ongoing Israeli assault, which has led to tens of thousands of casualties and missing persons, as well as widespread destruction of homes, infrastructure and property.

He also highlighted the escalating violence in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and the continued crimes committed by Israeli settlers against defenseless Palestinian civilians. President Abbas further detailed the occupation authorities’ ongoing killings, raids into cities, towns, villages and refugee camps, settlement expansion and repeated violations against holy sites, particularly in occupied Jerusalem.

The President stressed the urgent need to implement UN Security Council Resolution 2735, including an immediate ceasefire, the full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza and the rapid entry of humanitarian aid to prevent an imminent humanitarian catastrophe. He also underscored the necessity of enabling the Palestinian Authority to resume full responsibilities in the Strip.

President Abbas briefed President Mattarella on Palestine’s diplomatic, political and legal efforts in international forums to end the Israeli occupation and establish an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital. He reiterated the importance of upholding the UN General Assembly resolution regarding the International Court of Justice’s advisory opinion on ending the occupation.

He also emphasized the need to mobilize support for Palestine’s bid for full UN membership and to expand international recognition of the State of Palestine, calling on Italy to officially recognize the Palestinian state.

The two leaders discussed the strong bilateral relations between Italy and Palestine and ways to further enhance them. President Abbas praised Italy’s continued humanitarian assistance, including its reception of injured children evacuated from Gaza, its police training programs, and its support for Palestinian rights in international forums. He also commended Italy’s recent positive vote at the UN General Assembly on resolutions related to UNRWA and the ceasefire.

The meeting was attended by several senior Palestinian officials.