Paris (TDI): French President Emmanuel Macron and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas have agreed to establish a joint panel to draft a constitution for a future Palestinian state, Macron announced on Tuesday following their meeting in Paris.
Macron said the panel will handle all “constitutional, institutional and organizational” aspects of the draft framework, adding that President Abbas had already presented a working draft. He further said that France will contribute €100 million in humanitarian aid to Gaza in the ongoing year.
Abbas, who is the head of Palestinian Authority (PA) and Palestinian President since 2005, thanked France and other international partners for support and said that the formation of this constitutional panel was a top priority.
Though the PA’s rule is only limited to a small part of the territory, in the wake of Trump’s peace plan and the ongoing transition it started, it is largely being hoped that the PA will have a larger role in the governance of Gaza and the future Palestine state.
France, along with Belgium, the UK, Australia, Portugal, and Canada, has joined more than 140 countries, mostly from Western Europe, in recognizing a Palestinian state in September.
Read More: France Recognizes Palestine at Landmark UN Conference
Macron and Abbas also discussed Israel’s settlement and annexation plans in the West Bank; which the French President called a “red line.”
“Plans for partial or total annexation, whether legal or de facto, constitute a red line to which we will respond strongly with our European partners,” Macron said.
“The violence of the settlers and the acceleration of settlement projects are reaching new heights, threatening the stability of the West Bank and constitute violations of international law.” Responding to the joint panel announcement, the Israeli embassy in Paris accused Abbas of “manipulating France.”
Meanwhile, the ceasefire that was put in place on October 10 between Israel and Hamas has been violated by Israel over and over again. Trump, who helped broker the ceasefire, said last week that a Gaza Stabilization Force will assume duties on ground in Gaza “very soon.
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