Abbas Seeks 2,400 Square Miles of Land

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Wednesday called on Israel to cede 2,400 square miles of land for use as a new Palestinian homeland.

Abbas said in a television interview that the land in the West Bank and Gaza would be a relatively small chip of the British-controlled territory that had been earmarked as Palestine when Israel was formed shortly after World War II.

This is our vision for the Palestinian independent state with full sovereignty on its borders, water and resources, Abbas said.

The Guardian said the land was among the demands Abbas laid out in the run-up to a U.S.-sponsored conference next month on the Israeli-Palestinian quarrel. It was the first time Abbas had mentioned a specific number of square miles the Palestinian Authority is seeking.

The tract of land mentioned by Abbas is about 38 percent of Israel’s 8,132-square-mile area.