Mahmoud Abbas
Mahmoud AbbasAFP photo

Nabil Abu Rudeineh, spokesman for the Palestinian Authority (PA) in Ramallah, declared Monday that PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas is not only not taking a stance on the Syrian civil war, but that he is adamant about sticking to a non-interference policy in internal affairs in the Arab world.

According to Abu Rudeineh, Abbas does not want to put the "Palestinian refugees" at the heart of conflicts that do not directly serve the interests of the Palestinian people or the Arab world. In addition, the "official" PA policy is to distance itself from societal conflicts in the Arab world at large, according to the official. 

"The PA mission to Damascus in an official delegation was trying to protect the refugee camps," Abu Rudeineh insisted. "[We tried] to lift the siege on them and save the poor Palestinians there from starvation." 

"When it comes to the crisis in Syria, it is important to keep moving toward a peaceful solution," he added, "including encouraging dialogue and supporting the second Geneva conference." 

Contrary to the frequent accusations against Israel by the PA for alleged "war crimes" against the Palestinian Arabs, Abbas has avoided commenting on the war crimes proven by the UN to have been perpetuated against the Syrian people by President Bashar Assad. 

Condemnations against Assad's regime include responsibility for August's chemical weapons attack; reports that Syrian army soldiers were given permission to rape women; and the unprecedented murder of 130,000 Syrian citizens