Palestinian claims to Jerusalem lose Saudi as well as US support
The Palestinians have three major grievances with the Trump administration on Jerusalem, but are most irked by Saudi backing for the Trump peace plan.
Palestine rage over President Donald Trump Jerusalem decisions was further fueled Friday, Dec. 17 by the comment from Washington: “We cannot envision any situation under which the Western Wall would not be part of Israel. But, as the president said, the specific boundaries of sovereignty of Israel are going to be part of the final status agreement.” It came with the announcement that Vice President Mike Pence will pay a visit to the Western Wall next Wednesday’ Dec. 20, during his Middle East tour.
Not too long ago, President Trump himself visited the Western wall on May 22. But then, American security officers excluded their Israeli counterparts from safeguarding the visit, claiming it took place outside Israeli territory. border. Eight months later, Trump has restored Israel’s sovereignty to the Western Wall, which encloses the hallowed compound of the last Jewish Temple, in time for his vice president to pray there.
For the Palestinians, this is another Trump-administration shift in Israel’s favor and its consequent loss of credibility as an honest broker for the Palestinian-Israeli dispute. The Palestinian Authority in Ramallah reiterated this position Saturday, after announcing a boycott of the Pence visit and severing contact with Washington – a position they can’t really afford to sustain for long.
But what is really irking them even more than the Trump administration’s pro-Israeli stance on Jerusalem is its endorsement by their longstanding champion, Riyadh. The impression gaining ground in recent weeks is that Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner has reached an understanding with Saudi Crown Prince Muhammed bin Salman (MbS) on a new plan for resolving the Israeli-Arab conflict, which departs fundamentally from the traditional core issues that scuttled all past peace processes.
The first inkling of such a plan came on the pages of the The New York Times of Nov. 11, under the title “Trump Team Begins Drafting Middle East Peace Plan.” This plan was described as pushing ahead on the fast track due to three factors:
- Its support by the Saudi crown prince and Egyptian President Abdel-Fatteh El-Sisi.
- The uncertainty of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s future in the face of long-running police probes against him.
- The constant erosion of Mahmoud Abbas’ standing as Palestinian Authority Chairman, whose rapidly diminishing popularity, due to his advanced age of 82 and the corruption rife in Ramallah, is reflected in the latest Palestinian opinion poll on Dec. 7-10. (70 percent want him to retire: 84 percent on the West Bank and 26 percent in the Gaza Strip).
Washington has therefore chosen a moment of leadership weakness to push ahead with its plans to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian dispute.
A week before the NYT report, Abbas (Abu Mazen) paid an urgent visit to Riyadh to meet Prince Muhammed. Since then, a continuous stream of tidbits is emanating from their conversation. According to one report, the Saudi prince put before the Palestinian leader an American-Saudi blueprint. It proclaims Abu Dis, a village located on the fringes of east Jerusalem, as the capital of the future Palestinian state. That state would have limited sovereignty in parts of the West Bank, while all the Jewish communities would remain in place. East Jerusalem would not be declared its capital; and the Palestinian refugees’ “right of return” was dropped, as was mention of the pre-1967 boundaries.
Notwithstanding flat Palestinian denials of all these reports, they continue to gain ground and credence. The picture emerging from the Saudi prince’s conversation with Abu Mazen is taking shape as underlining the following points:
- The old Saudi-Arab League peace plan of 2003 is a dead letter;
- Riyadh has dropped its demand that Israel accept a Palestinian State with East Jerusalem as its capital;
- Since the original Saudi Peace proposal which the prince called Plan A was dead, it is necessary to move forward to Plan B.
- Plan B is essentially as follows: The State of Palestine would be established in the Gaza Strip plus large tracts of territory to be annexed from northern Sinai. Egypt has agreed to this outline. This deal would essentially render irrelevant the Palestinian demand to restore the pre-1967 boundaries for their state.
- When Abu Mazen asked what would happen to the West Bank, MbS reportedly replied: “We can continue to negotiate about this.”
- And when he pressed further: What about Jerusalem, the settlements, Areas B and C, the answer was: “These will be issues for negotiation between two states, and we will help you.”
These reports are furiously denied by Palestinian officials and, although no other official source, including Prince Muhammad, has verified them, they continue to abound. The Palestinians now have three major grievances against the Trump administration for which they are cutting off ties with Washington in protest: Recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, the promise to move the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem and, now, the declaration of the Western Wall as part of Israel in any political solution. This will be underlined by the Pence visit. Yet neither Washington nor Riyadh shows any sign of backtracking on their far-reaching plan which defies all former conventions.
Abu Mazen is in a jam. Even if he tries to distance himself from Washington, he cannot possibly divorce the Palestinians from the two leading Arab nations, Saudi Arabia and Egypt, which would lop off the branches of the Arab tree on which they sit. Doing so might well thrust Ramallah on the path of the anti-West Turkish-Iranian-Hizballah axis and its extremist ideology. There are early signs that his rivals in Gaza, the radical Hamas, may be adopting this path. After Friday prayers in the mosques of Gaza, on Dec. 15, some of the demonstrators at the Israel border force were seen for the first time holding aloft huge placards with depictions of Gen. Qassem Soleimani, Commander of Iranian Revolutionary Guards Al Qods. If Iran can gain solid inroads into the Palestinian community at large, its dispute with Israel would assume an entirely new dimension.
God bless Trump in supporting God’s holy land and capital!!!
President Trump is the best! MAGA!
For so said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel; “With tranquility and restfulness shall you be saved, with quietude and trust shall be your might; but you did not want.
And you said, ‘No, but on horses will we flee.’ Therefore, you shall flee. ‘And on swift [steeds] will we ride.’ Therefore, your pursuers shall be swift.
@iVaN,
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@ mighty sucker iVaN
+++++++++ too much BS, go see youself in a telegraphic pole! ++++++++++
Amen. Too bad The American left is still embracing ignorance.
“Amen. Too bad The American left is still embracing ignorance.”
The European left actually worships ignorance.
Have the Jordanian Wakf replaced a Saudi or Egyptian Wakf at the Har haBiet. The Jordanians have proven to be the worst of all Choices.
God bless the Peace Makers. If Netanyahu is having problems with police probes, he can always go back to USA. Though, I am not sure about his diplomatic immunity as in case of Saad Hariri.
The quality of leadership being demonstrated by President Trump and his administration about this matter is outstanding. Their support for Israel in pursuit of an ultimately common-sense solution to Israeli-Palestinian issues is well-reasoned and has the full support of nearly all Americans.
Now, let’s stay focused and persistent in order to achieve a lasting solution beneficial to all in the Middle East.
Of course the Western Wall will remain in Israel, as will the massive Jewish Cemetery on the Mt of Olives. Mt Scopus and French Hill will remain in Israel, as will the City of David. Gilo and Ma’ale Adumim, etc… The 1967 lines are not viable, and it is time that the PA accept this.
Gilo and Ma’ale Adumim were always part of Gush Etzion. If you include them in your “New Israel” don’t leave the rest of the Gush out. Even so, all of Eretz Yisrael has to remain under our sovereignty. Mordichai Kedar’s Sheich-doms is the best idea yet, other than expelling all ‘Arabs’ who don’t want to be part of the Jewish State.
EFRAT
“Eight months later, Trump has restored Israel’s sovereignty to the Western Wall, which encloses the hallowed compound of the last Jewish Temple.” I thought G-d did that, but hey what do I know.
Know this, rav..
yeshaya 28
…he said to them, “This is the rest; give rest to the weary, and this is the tranquility,” but they would not listen.
13. And the word of the Lord shall be for them a precept for a precept, a precept for a precept, a line for a line, a line for a line, a little there, a little there, in order that they go and stumble backwards and be broken, and be trapped and caught.
14. Therefore, listen to the word of the Lord, men of scorn, allegorists of this people who are in Jerusalem.
15. For you said, “We have made a treaty with death, and with the grave we have set a limit; when an overflowing scourge passes, it shall not come upon us, for we have made lies our shelter and in falsehood have we hidden ourselves.
16. Therefore, so has the Lord God said: “Behold, I have laid as a foundation a stone in Zion, a fortress stone, a costly cornerstone, a foundation well founded; the believer shall not hasten.
17. And I will make justice the line, and righteousness the plummet, and hail shall sweep away the shelter of lies, and water shall flood the hidingplace.
18. And your treaty with death shall be nullified, and your limit with the grave shall not endure; when an overflowing scourge passes, you shall be trampled by it.
19. When it passes, it shall take you, for every morning it shall pass, by day and by night, and it shall be only terror to understand the message.
20. For the bed is too short for one to stretch, and the ruler-it shall be narrow when he enters.
21. For like the mountain of breaches shall the Lord arise, like the valley in Gibeon He shall be incensed; to perform His deed, strange is His deed, and to perform His work, strange is His work.
22. And now, do not scorn, lest your pains become strong, for a complete destruction have I heard from the Lord God of Hosts upon the entire land.
@iVaN,
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“Eight months later, Trump has restored Israel’s sovereignty to the Western Wall, which encloses the hallowed compound of the last Jewish Temple.”
@\\\\\bob,
Israel and the Jewish people had rightful sovereignty there for well over 3000 years but were able to liberate it from Jordanian occupation in 1967——–but it always rightfully belonged to the Jewish people even when it was under British, Ottoman Empire, Byzantine and Roman occupation!
Why when there is the PA, Hamas, Fatah, missiles fired by unknown Jihadi groups and other sometimes armed and funded by Iran and perhaps even some of their manpower, dp we keep refer to 3,500 “Palestinian protesters in Gaza” when they are probably hard core Hamas cadres or other radical Islamists?
Who are the Palestinians do they even exist? Who represents them collectively? PA because Abbas is more likely to pass the flawed litmus tests in the west? He can not even show his face in refugee camps for fear of his life.
The false assumption is the “Palestinians” want the peace process and a state in a two state solution, but there threats and violence belies any good faith of intent. Why didn’t they use the US Embassy move to state their own hope that the US would commit to opening an embassy in East Jerusalem? To press for a state of their own sooner than later? Answer, it is because radical Islamists demand right of return, with no conditions on who and how many “refugees” would be returning, the end of Israel and annihilation of the Jews and the radicals are obviously running things.
How did the Mayor of Nazareth respond to the Embassy move? He placed restrictions on Christian pilgrims limiting numbers and the Holiday celebrations. And they want to control the Holy Sites in Jerusalem? It would result in more desecration and ethnic cleansing by radical Muslims not mutual respect where there is divergence of religious beliefs.
Very WELL SAID, jeb !
Very WELL SAID, jeb !
I totally agree with Jeb. I argued with one of my Jewish friends Thursday night who hates Trump. He can’t see the reality is Israel will never give back East Jerusalem-nor should they. It contains their holiest site. Jerusalem isn’t even mentioned in the Koran. Muslims don’t let Christians in the Dome of the Rock & the Israeli soldiers guarding it made me go through a metal director and seized the Bibles of a group behind me. Give the “Palestinians” some of the Sinai & see if they can control the nomads there. They don’t really want a state. They want Israel destroyed
I see something else… Iran and the SCO… The counter weight to the west… It all seems one sided. But the SCO has made clear about the East of Jerusalem. – Iran is an observer to the SCO. – This is all very dangerous. It all sounds so good with Trump… Too good. As if divisive. To the point where a possible Iranian led, SCO heavy weight could emerge behind Iran… Russia & China are not going to be sitting back over Jerusalem. They too will begin execute diplomatic steps once the US finalises further information regarding there plans.
“… Russia & China are not going to be sitting back over Jerusalem. They too will begin execute diplomatic steps once the US finalises further information regarding there plans.”
Maybe Russia and China (both have at least semi-friendly relations with Israel) will eventually come around and support the new Trump initiative——–you never know!
What a great photo…
MbS with Jared Kushner = Saudi Arabia with Israel = The Custodian of the two holy mosques with AIPAC = …
The young saudi ruller is pragmatic and modern. He has made his choice. The palestinian problem is no longer a problem for the Arab World… They understood that Israel means stability in the MiddleEast… From now on just Iran and wannabe regional power Turkey will continue to ride the palestinian horse to his death.
King Abdullah II has chosen the wrong side and might drive the Hashemite Kingdom to the disaster…
Yeshaya 30
8. Now, come write it on a tablet with them, and on a book engrave it, and it shall be for the last day, forever to eternity.
9. For a rebellious people are they, lying children, children who would not hearken to the Lord’s instruction.
10. Who said to the seers, “You shall not see,” and to the prophets, “You shall not prophesy for us true things. Speak to us with smooth talk; prophesy mockery.
11. Turn away from the road, turn away from the path, cease from before us the Holy One of Israel.”
12. Therefore, so said the Holy One of Israel, “Because you have despised this matter, and you have put your trust in oppression and a perverse one, and you have relied upon it.
13. Therefore, this iniquity shall be to you as a breach of a falling [wall], revealed in a fortified wall, whose breach will come suddenly.”
14. And He shall break it like the breaking of a potter’s jug, crushed without pity, and in its crushing shall not be found a shard, to scoop fire from a hearth, or to scoop water from a cistern.
@iVaN,
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“King Abdullah II has chosen the wrong side and might drive the Hashemite Kingdom to the disaster…”
The “Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan”——-AKA:——-“Palestine” !
It is a very good plan. The PA has one last chance not to screw up. They will receive more land then ever before. But being it the PA they will miss this chance too I can guarantee that. Better to be the duped cousin with a low wage job who flunked out of high school, and has many excuses for it. Misery sells well in the EU.
Great plan.
Give the fakestinians in Gaza also a bit of sinai. Hopefully not all the nice beaches!
And see if they behave “land for peace lie”
If they are peaceful good. If not it is a declaration of war if they attack israel with rockets as they became a state.
If there is war israel has to defend itselves and it could now fight like war not like police.
juda and shomron: no way. The fakestineans wolho live there will be guests of israel with a special resident visa for fakestinians.
And if they dont behave they get arrested and sent to their home country which is greater gaza or the state of fakestine.
This is a plan i like
Of course the fakestinian resident visa alloes only residence in “a” areas of juda&shomron. And they are subject to the same regulations of movement (sepecial permits to enter israels rest for work after background check) etc.
No fakestinian state in juda&shomron only areas with local autonomy (city hall. license plates city tax. opening hours of shops. Some other taxes and things like that).
The Palestinians are going thru the UN, the ICC, and Genva
Questions?
“The Palestinians are going thru the UN, the ICC, and Genva
Questions?”
Yes———–any updates on war crime charges against any Palestinians for firing rockets into Israel and for organizing group violence and terrorism against Israelis ???
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Jerusalem
Our Happy Home
When shall we come to thee
When shall our sorrows have an end?
Thy joys when shall we see
?♪♬♫͙♪♬♫͙♪♬♫͙♪♬♫͙♪♬♫͙♪♬♫͙♪♬♫͙♪♬♫͙♪♬♫͙
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My eyes became misty reading this.
So many thoughts.
Ah peace and joy, US President has done what is RIGHT –
recognized REALITY in a world gone insane, irrational.
Beware when they say – peace and safety.
Muslims are irrational, demon-driven –
so is much of Europe and the American ‘Democrats’
who are literal Satan-worshippers
or ‘snowflakes’ who melt in Light of any reality
My love for Israel is very deep, as is my love for the LORD.
God bless Israel and America
Amen
Thank you shep———–WONDERFUL post !
This plan is garbage as well. Gaza is part of Eretz Yisrael. If they want their own state they can have it in Egypt if they want. In any case they are welcome to move out of Israel permanently and live somewhere else. You can learn more at http://www.TheMitzvahProject.org. Shalom
” If they want their own state they can have it in Egypt if they want.”
Will they get along with the Salifi’s living in Egypt’s Sinai ???
Just wondering!
Trump’s next moves will be, to free Gazans from Hamas rule, and to drive Iranian foes out of South Syria and of Sinai.
Once again, remember Dovid Hamelech’s warning: “al tivtichu be’nedivim be’ben Adam she’ain lo teshuah”… There is only ONE Who will bring peace to Yehudah ve’Yerushalayim – and its not going to be in a way which any of us expect.
But we shall see…