Conflicts & War

Abbas urges US to intervene with Israel as Gaza death toll passes 200

(Update 1: Adds remarks by Abbas, re-leades, alters headline)

Jerusalem, May 17 (EFE).- Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Monday urged the US administration to intervene to halt the Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip, where at least 200 people have died and 1,300 others wounded.

Abbas’ comments came during a meeting with US deputy assistant secretary of state for Israel and Palestinian affairs, Hady Amr, currently in the region trying to find a diplomatic solution to the worst outbreak of violence in the region in years, which entered its eighth consecutive day on Monday.

Abbas, who governs in the occupied West Bank, called on Washington to resume efforts aimed at “reaching a political solution based on the United Nations resolutions and international law,” according to the Palestinian news agency Wafa.

On Sunday, Amr met with Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz, days after he arrived in Tel Aviv to lead the Joe Biden administration’s efforts to end the bloodshed.

Washington has no direct contact with Hamas, the Islamist movement that rules the blockaded Gaza Strip, and which is designated as a terrorist organization by the US.

More than 3,150 rockets have been launched from Gaza into the Israeli territory since last week. Some 460 of them went down over Gaza without reaching Israeli territory while more than 1,150 were intercepted by Israel’s Iron Dome anti-missile system.

In Israel, at least 10 people have died and 300 others have been wounded by rocket fire, according to emergency services.

During the past eight days, Israeli strikes on Gaza destroyed 76 buildings, with some 725 houses significantly damaged, according to UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) reported over 38,000 people sought refuge in schools after they evacuated their homes in fear of airstrikes.

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