The Foreign Ministry told when Abbas’s visit to Russia could take place

The visit of Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas to Russia will take place after the Palestinian side determines a convenient time, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov said.

“We proceed from the fact that they themselves determine a convenient time for themselves, with the understanding that the open invitation of the Russian leadership, which Mahmoud Abbas has, remains in force,” said the deputy minister (quote according to TASS).

According to Bogdanov, this meeting “would be very important” and it would take place “at any moment when the Palestinian leadership deems it possible.”

A day earlier, on November 9, Russian Presidential Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov announced the postponement of Abbas’s visit to Russia; they promised to announce the exact date later.

The visit of the Palestinian leader to the Russian Federation was announced even before the escalation of the conflict between the Palestinian group Hamas and Israel. On October 26, Peskov said that Abbas may visit Russia in the near future. On November 2, the press secretary of the Russian President said that a visit of the Palestinian President to Russia was on the agenda, but it was difficult to talk about an exact date.

On October 7, Israel began bombing the Gaza Strip. This happened after the Palestinian group Hamas attacked the southern regions of the country. During the Israeli attack, about 1,400 people were killed, and more than 200 were taken hostage by militants. The Palestinian side said more than 10,800 people were killed as a result of Israeli airstrikes in the Gaza Strip. The number of wounded exceeds 26,400 people.

On November 10, the Gaza border crossing department announced that the first 85 Russian citizens could leave the enclave. According to a list of the Gaza border crossing authority published by the agency, 84 of the 85 Russian citizens whose passage was approved through the Rafah checkpoint as of November 10 were listed as having dual citizenship.

At least 36 names of Russian passport holders from the list are female. There are 22 European, including Slavic, female names on the list. For the most part, these are families of two, three or more children with one parent. There are a total of 32 children on the list, the two oldest of them are 17 years old. Thus, 68 people out of 85 evacuees are women and children.