MOSCOW, August 13. /TASS/. The meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin was honest and open, the sides discussed Gaza and US actions, Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas said.
"We had two meetings. The first was an extended one, part of which was in front of the media, and the second part was a one-on-one, where we communicated personally. During the second meeting, we openly discussed all the issues that concern both Russia and Palestine. Of course, we talked about the tragic situation in the Gaza Strip, as a result of which 40,000 people have been killed and almost 100,000 injured, and as a result of which more than 70% of the infrastructure, buildings in the Gaza Strip have been destroyed," he said in an interview with TASS First Deputy Director General Mikhail Gusman. "We talked about what is happening now in the Gaza Strip, how America sees further developments, how the international community is reacting to the events in the Gaza Strip. I honestly, frankly said that both Palestinians and Arabs do not agree with the official position of the United States," he emphasized.
Abbas said that on October 7, 2023, despite the goals that the fighters had, it turned out that Hamas "provided Israel with an excuse to launch such a full-scale operation and to kill so many people, to injure so many people, to destroy so many buildings and infrastructure." "It also provided an excuse for Israel to continue that aggression, the military actions that have been going on in parallel in the West Bank all this time," he added.