PA President Mahmoud Abbas (right) with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Photo: wiki commons.

Mahmoud Abbas, the leader of the Palestinian Authority, told his leaders of his party on Wednesday that once he returns from a trip to the United States, which includes his attendance at the United Nations General Assembly, he will step down as president, according to Channel 10 News in Israel.

Speaking to leaders of his party today, Abbas said “you have ten days until I return from the U.S., you should seek a new president”.

The Channel 10 report cites a PA minister as its source.

This is not the first time Abbas has claimed he would step down as the Palestinian Authority’s president.  He did so in May of 2008, stating at the time that if a peace agreement with Israel was not agreed to in principle within six months, he would step down.

Earlier this week, Abbas and the Palestinian Authority’s top negotiator, Saeb Erekat, stated that the Oslo Accords signed in 1993, which is the basic framework for relations between Israel and the PA, may be nullified from the Palestinian side.

Abbas was elected in 2005 and while his mandate expired in 2009, he continues to lead the PA.