MOSCOW: Russia has said that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas had “postponed” a visit to Moscow that was planned for the current month, local media reported on Friday.
War on Gaza: Moscow Says Abbas ‘Postponed’ Trip to Russia Amid Barbaric Israeli Bombardment
Russia said several times that a trip by Mahmoud Abbas to Moscow was probable without previously giving a date. Russian Deputy Minister for Foreign affairs Mikhail Bogdanov told Russian media on Friday that a visit planned for Nov. 15 had been moved. He said that the visit of Abbas has been delayed on the request of the Palestinian authority.
Mikhail Bogdanov stated that Palestinian authorities had informed Russian authorities that “the situation now is tough” and that President Abbas “cannot leave the region”.
He maintained Moscow was “maintaining working contact with the Palestinian authority constantly via phone. Russian President Vladimir Putin has called for an establishment of Palestinian state as a long-term solution to the conflict in the region.
The Palestinian Health Ministry in Gaza said that 13 people have been killed and 26 others wounded in a ‘massacre’ following an Israeli airstrike targeted ambulances at Al Shifa Hospital in Gaza City.
The death toll in the Gaza Strip from the ongoing Israeli attacks has risen to 9,227, including 3,826 children and 2,405 women, the Health Ministry in Gaza reported on Friday. Ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra, speaking at a news conference in Gaza City, disclosed that an additional 23,516 people had been injured, with 2,100 still trapped under the rubble, including 1,200 children.
