Arab states, including Egypt and Saudi Arabia, have asked Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to restore calm in the West Bank, Avi Issacharoff reported in The Times of Israel today.

The Arab governments expressed concern that a full-blown intifada would lead to a loss of control over the Palestinian street and lead to the empowerment of extremist groups like Hamas and Islamic Jihad.

According to Palestinian sources, Abbas’s office has been in contact with the office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, which sent a similar demand to work more aggressively against the escalating violence.

Abbas reportedly met on Sunday with members of the Tanzim, Fatah’s paramilitary organization, and told them to restrict themselves to non-violent protests. Attendance at popular protests against Israeli security forces was down on Monday. Abbas is chief of the Fatah movement in addition to leading the Palestinian Authority.

“All the [Palestinian] Authority’s efforts are directed at restoring calm,” Abbas said on Monday in a statement reported by Israel’s Channel 2.

However, terror attacks continued on Tuesday. Three Israelis were killed and over 20 more were injured in a series of terror attacks in the cities of Jerusalem and Raanana.

[Photo: President Abbas / YouTube ]