Abbas hails Gaza pullout

Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas on Friday hailed the Israeli withdrawal from Gaza as the result of Palestinian sacrifice.
Abbas was addressing a crowd of Palestinians who have gathered for a rally at Rafah as Israeli troops removed the last remaining settlers in Gadid.

"We want on this occasion to pay homage to our martyrs, to our prisoners, to our wounded and those among our people who have made sacrifices," Abbas said.

Abbas repeated calls for Palestinians to refrain from violence, promising that there would be further pullbacks from the far larger West Bank and annexed east Jerusalem.

"The most important thing is how to build our country so that it will become a model of civilisation for the rest of the world," he said.

"This step is only the first step that will be completed in Jenin and in the West Bank and in Jerusalem," he said.

With the evacuation operation winding down for the weekend, police and soldiers on Friday forced out settlers from only one more community, Gadid.