Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has strongly criticised the Hamas group, calling for the release of Israeli hostages held in Gaza and demanding that Hamas be disarmed. In a televised speech from Ramallah on Wednesday, Abbas referred to Hamas fighters as "sons of dogs" and accused them of making the war in Gaza worse by giving Israel a reason to keep its offensive going.

“Sons of dogs, release the hostages and block their justifications,” Abbas said, adding that Israel’s military campaign has turned into what he called “the Israeli genocide that the Gaza Strip is being subjected to”. Israel denies accusations of genocide, claiming that its actions are aimed at Hamas in self-defence. Meanwhile, Palestinian Authority President Abbas has made strong comments that highlight growing divisions within Palestinian factions, especially towards Hamas. Although Abbas has criticised Hamas in the past, his recent remarks were his harshest yet. These comments come at a time when efforts are being made to renew a ceasefire, with regional powers like Egypt suggesting the possibility of disarming Hamas. While Abbas hasn’t directly condemned Hamas's October 7 attack on Israel, he has consistently opposed violence against civilians and reaffirmed his support for an independent Palestinian state.

He also urged Hamas to give up control of Gaza and let the Palestine Liberation Organisation and the Palestinian Authority take over governance. He suggested that Hamas should transform itself into a political party that follows the laws of a future Palestinian state. “Hamas must end its control over the Gaza Strip, hand over all its affairs to the Palestine Liberation Organisation and the legitimate Palestinian National Authority, and refrain from carrying arms,” Abbas said, urging the group to operate within the framework of “international legitimacy.”

Abbas's comments were immediately rejected by Hamas, which also questioned his leadership. The group called Abbas' charges "suspicious" and accused him of "placing the responsibility for the crimes of the occupation and its ongoing aggression on our Palestinian people." Fatah and Hamas are the two main political groups in Palestine, but they have been in conflict for many years. Because of this, many efforts to bring them together have failed. Until 2007, the Palestinian Authority, which is led by Fatah, was in charge of Gaza. But after Hamas won the 2006 elections, they took control of Gaza by force.

Over the years, different agreements have been made to unite Gaza and the West Bank under one government, like the one signed in Cairo in 2017 and another in Beijing last year with 14 Palestinian groups. But each time, these plans have fallen apart. Abbas didn’t hold back in blaming Hamas for undermining the broader Palestinian struggle for independence. “It has provided the occupation (Israel) with dangerous free services, whether intentionally or unintentionally,” Abbas said.

“Hostage-taking gave the criminal occupation one of its most prominent excuses to carry out its conspiracies and crimes in Gaza.” The 88-year-old leader again asked for an international peace meeting and urged that previous United Nations Security Council decisions made to solve the conflict should be followed and put into action.