NEW YORK (JTA) — Mahmoud Abbas said resistance, consistent with international law, is a Palestinian right.
The Palestinian Authority president, speaking Tuesday in Bethlehem at the opening of the sixth Fatah general assembly — the first in two decades — was non-specific on whether resistance included armed struggle.
According to the Jerusalem Post, Abbas warned Palestinians not to mar their legitimate struggle with terrorism, while other reports suggested that Abbas had been deliberately vague on what constitutes legitimate resistance in an effort to placate a divided population.
"Although peace is our choice, we reserve the right to resistance, legitimate under international law," Abbas said, accoring to Reuters.
Reports said that a draft declaration called for various forms of civil disobedience, but that if peace talks failed leaves open the possibility of armed struggle.
