His brief trip comes amid renewed efforts to revive the Middle East peace process and concern among politicians that any deal on the issue of Palestinian refugees in Lebanon would be at the expense of the Lebanese. 

In an interview published Monday, Abbas said he categorically rejects the permanent resettlement of hundreds of thousands of refugees in Lebanon. 

"Until our problem is solved, we are guests in Lebanon, and we refuse any nation other than our own and any solution other than the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 194," on the Palestinian right to return to their former homeland, Abbas told Al-Liwaa newspaper. 

The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine refugees (UNRWA) lists almost 400,000 Palestinian refugees in Lebanon. 

But Lebanese and Palestinian officials say the actual number may be as low as 250,000 as UNRWA does not strike off its list those who emigrate. Most of the refugees who remain live in dire conditions in 12 camps across the country of four million inhabitants.