Palestinian Government Says Bahrain Confab was ‘Stunning Failure’ for Trump
The Palestinian government says a recent US-sponsored conference in Bahrain meant to promote a “deal” on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict was a “stunning failure” for the administration of US President Donald Trump.
In a statement released on Saturday, Nabil Abu Rudeineh, a spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, said the failure of the meeting, which was held in Manama on June 25-26 despite a Palestinian boycott, must have sent a message to Washington.
“The stunning failure of the Manama workshop… should constitute a clear message to Mr. Trump and his administration that the policy of dictates, threats, and coercion is no longer effective with our steadfast people and its legitimate leadership headed by President Mahmoud Abbas, which rejected all suspicious deals aimed at the liquidation of our national cause,” Abu Rudeineh said.
He also accused the Trump administration of pursuing a “policy of punishment and intimidation… against everyone.”
Abu Rudeineh further complained that the US team behind the proposal on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict was “totally biased toward Israel.”
“This biased team cannot offer solutions that can lead to a lasting and just peace,” he said.
The official also expressed Palestine’s resolve to achieve “a just and lasting peace” based on United Nations (UN) resolutions and the preservation of Palestinian rights, with the establishment of an independent state with East Jerusalem al-Quds as its capital.
The Bahrain workshop focused on the economic aspects of Trump’s proposal on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which Trump himself calls the “deal of the century” but which all Palestinian factions have rejected before it has become fully public.
While Palestinian public opinion, as well as the Arab street in general, is fiercely opposed to the plan, certain Arab governments back the initiative, ignoring the demands of the Palestinian government and people.
Israel Arrests Palestinian Minister of al-Quds Affairs
On the other hand, Israeli occupation regime forces have arrested Palestinian Minister of Jerusalem al-Quds Affairs Fadi al-Hadmi during a raid on his home in the occupied city.
Palestine’s Wafa news agency reported on Sunday that the Israeli occupation forces searched Hadmi’s home at night and confiscated his mobile phone before taking him into custody.
Hadmi’s arrest was the first high-profile detention in Tel Aviv’s ongoing crackdown on the Arab neighborhoods in Jerusalem al-Quds, the report said.
Israeli occupation police spokesperson Micky Rosenfeld confirmed that Hadami had been arrested and was being questioned for what he merely referred to as “activities in Jerusalem.”
Meanwhile, a source close to the Palestinian minister told AFP that the arrest was most likely linked to Hadmi’s recent activities that included accompanying Chilean President Sebastian Pinera during a visit to the Old City of Jerusalem al-Quds.
On Tuesday, Pinera visited the Al-Aqsa Mosque Compound, situated in East Jerusalem al-Quds.
Israel occupied East Jerusalem al-Quds during the Six-Day War in 1967 and later annexed it in a move not recognized by the international community.
The Palestinians, however, view al-Quds’ as the capital of their future sovereign state.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry claimed that Pinera’s visit to the Al-Aqsa Mosque Compound with senior Palestinian officials had been in violation of diplomatic procedures and previous agreements.
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