BETHLEHEM, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- Palestinian President and Fatah Party Chairman Mahmoud Abbas said on Monday that holding his party's congress in the holy West Bank city of Bethlehem is a "historic event."

    Abbas as well as hundreds of Fatah party leaders and members of its General Assembly arrived in Bethlehem to join the three-day meetings of Fatah General Assembly, where over 2,000 Fatah members will participate.

    At a reception ceremony held at one of the hotels in Bethlehem, Abbas told Fatah leaders that holding Fatah General Assembly in the Palestinian territories "is a significant and historic event."

    Abbas stressed on the eve of the sixth Fatah congress that the conference is held in Bethlehem "as the Palestinians decided to follow the method of negotiations with Israel to get their rights and achieve peace in the region."

    "The Palestinian people really want their rights based on the international legitimacy. Our people believe in peace and in the negotiations to achieve this peace and establish our state beside the state of Israel," said Abbas.

    Fatah movement would present during the three-day congress meeting a draft of the group's political platform that rejects recognizing Israel and a pure Jewish state and would adopt a new strategy of "peaceful popular struggle against Israel."

    "I hope that we will be able to reach peace with our neighbors (Israelis) in order to build the future of our state that will live side-by-side with their state in peace and security," said Abbas.

    He also slammed Gaza-ruling Islamic Hamas movement for refusing to lift the travel ban on dozens of Gaza Fatah members. However, he didn't mention Hamas by name.

    "Not letting our people in Gaza to reach the West Bank had broken our hearts. We really hoped they (Gaza Fatah members) could be able to come to attend the conference," said Abbas, adding "in spite of this, we will hold the conference."

    He expressed hope that Fatah congress would come out with "fruitful results that we were hoping to have a long time ago, not only for Fatah members, but also for all our Palestinian people and our friends all over the world."