RAMALLAH (Ma'an) -- President Mahmoud Abbas will continue on as leader of the Palestinian Authority, the secretary-general of the president's office said Monday.

Abdul Rahim said reports of Abbas' resignation and the dismantling of the PA were "all rumors to lower the spirits of the Palestinians," as he received the Tunisian representative to the PA Shakib Ath-Thawadi at the presentational compound in Ramallah, central West Bank.

Reports surfaced last week as Abbas' meeting before the Arab Follow-Up Committee was delayed, when officials suggested that the president would resign if talks with Israel failed.

Speaking before Arab foreign ministers on Friday, Abbas called into question the need for “the Palestinian Authority's continued existence if the efforts to establish an independent Palestinian state fail.”

Abdul Rahim said the meeting with Ath-Thawadi focused on the latest political developments and the settlement obstacle in direct negotiations, which the Arab League said it would give one more month before withdrawing its endorsement.