Abbas calls for stopping Israel's practices against Palestinians

RAMALLAH - Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Wednesday slammed Israel as a state "above the law" in terms of its "persecution" against Palestinians, calling on the international community to stop the practices.

Abbas made the remarks during a meeting with his Cypriot counterpart Nikos Christodoulides held in the West Bank city of Ramallah, during which they discussed bilateral relations and the Palestinian issue, the official Palestinian news agency WAFA reported.

"We briefed the guest president on the Israeli government's practices of persecution against the Palestinians, besides the lands theft and the practices of settlers who destroy the foundations on which the political process was built," Abbas was quoted by the report as saying.

Speaking at a joint press conference with Christodoulides after the meeting, Abbas said Palestine looks forward to becoming a full member of the United Nations and obtaining more European countries' recognition of the State of Palestine.

Christodoulides, for his part, affirmed his keenness to strengthen the bilateral relationship between the two friendly countries and peoples.

"Cyprus supports peace based on the two-state solution and the establishment of a Palestinian state on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital," he said.