More than 140 world leaders will descend on New York next week for the annual United Nations General Assembly summit, which will be dominated this year by the future of the Palestinians and Gaza.

One world leader who will miss the gathering is Mahmud Abbas, the Palestinian president who Washington denied a visa to attend, along with his officials.

The humanitarian catastrophe ravaging the small Palestinian territory will top the agenda, two years after the beginning of the Israeli offensive in the Gaza Strip that was triggered by the unprecedented Hamas attack on October 7, 2023.

In a break with convention, the General Assembly voted Friday to allow Abbas to address the event by video link while he is represented in the chamber by the Palestinian ambassador.

Saudi Arabia and France wil

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