Washington, DC – U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) released the following statement after the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) reached an agreement to form a unity government with Hamas, a militant Islamic group:
“Today’s announcement that the PLO has reached a reconciliation agreement with Hamas, a known terrorist organization which refuses to recognize Israel and is committed to her destruction, is deeply troubling. For there to be peace, it must be achieved at the negotiating table. By taking unilateral steps at the United Nations and working towards a unity government with Hamas, President Mahmoud Abbas’s recent actions are shoving away the hand of peace rather than grasping it.”