GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) – Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas said Saturday that he wants to shield Palestinian militants from Israel and indicated he has no plans to crack down on gunmen after upcoming presidential elections.

In an interview with The Associated Press, Abbas defended a series of recent campaign appearances with gunmen, saying the Palestinian leadership has a responsibility to protect its people.

“When we see them, when we meet them, and when they welcome us, we owe them,” Abbas said. “This debt always is to protect them from assassination, to protect them from killing, and all these things they are subject to by the Israelis.”

Abbas, the front-runner in Jan. 9 Palestinian presidential elections, has been courting militants, appearing with gunmen at campaign stops in the West Bank and Gaza Strip in recent days.

Israel has demanded that the Palestinians disarm militants as a condition for restarting peace talks.

Abbas made no mention of a crackdown. But he said the armed militants are ready “to live within the society” if they are allowed to live in peace and security. “To remain wanted here and there, this is something no one could accept.”

Abbas also said that Israel’s planned withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, which is being planned without any Palestinian input, is “unacceptable” and demanded a resumption of peace talks.

“There is a Palestinian partner, and there always will be a Palestinian partner who is going to practice his right to negotiate and speak on behalf of the Palestinian people,” he said.

He called for a comprehensive solution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, including an end to Israel’s control of the West Bank, Gaza Strip and east Jerusalem, and a fair resolution for hundreds of thousands of Palestinian refugees.

“We should bring all of these subjects to the table in order to reach a final settlement,” he said.

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