JERUSALEM (JTA) — Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas left a Ramallah hospital more than a week after being admitted with a high fever.
Abbas, 82, was discharged from the hospital on Monday. He said as he left that he would return to work on Tuesday, the Palestinian WAFA news agency reported.
He said in a statement upon leaving the hospital “Thank God Almighty that I came out of the hospital today fully healthy, and return to my work starting tomorrow, God willing.
“This is due to God Almighty and this great hospital model of our Palestinian hospitals, including wise management, great doctors and nurses, and this actually shows that the health of our people is in good hands, and that the most precious thing we should care about is the health of our people and this is what I saw here and in other hospitals, which we are proud of.”
Abbas thanked the world leaders who called him or asked after his health. He said he told those who expressed concern about his health: “I say to them, God willing, the health of the homeland is good and we will, God willing, reach our goal of establishing an independent Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital. If the issue of Jerusalem brought us to the hospital we would get out of the hospital to be Jerusalem, the capital of Palestine.”
It was the third time Abbas was hospitalized since undergoing ear surgery earlier this month. He reportedly had a high fever when he was admitted to the hospital. Palestinian officials reported last week that Abbas had pneumonia and that he was on a respirator. He also received intravenous antibiotics.
On Sunday, Abbas’ doctor said he would be released, backtracking hours later and refusing to commit to a release date.
Last week, the PA issued photos of Abbas in the hospital, sitting up and reading a newspaper. The newspaper featured a cartoon showing an Israel soldier feeding poison to a Palestinian baby.
Abbas has been president of the PA since 2005.
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