Donald Trump has provoked fury by threatening to withhold aid payments to the Palestinian Authority over stalled Israeli peace talks.
“We pay the Palestinians HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS a year and get no appreciation or respect," the US president tweeted.
He continued: “With the Palestinians no longer willing to talk peace, why should we make any of these massive future payments to them?”
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The US gave $357m to the Palestinian Authority in 2016, according to The Times of Israel.
As one of the authority’s largest doners, Trump could inflict “great pain” on the Palestinians, says The Washington Post. But cutting off aid could also affect Israel, which relies on the Palestinian Authority to help maintain calm in the volatile region, the newspaper adds.
The Guardian calls Trump’s posturing “dangerous”, and says it demonstrates “a lack of understanding of the delicate mechanics that help maintain relative peace between Israelis and Palestinians”.
The office of Palestine’s President Mahmoud Abbas rejected what the Palestinians called Trump’s “blackmail” attempt, saying “Jerusalem is not for sale, neither for gold nor silver”.
The move follows Trump’s controversial decision in December to recognise Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, provoking unrest and triggering clashes in the Gaza Strip.
Hanan Ashrawi, a senior Palestinian leader, said Trump had “singlehandedly destroyed the very foundations of peace” with his Jerusalem declaration, ABC News reports.
-
The elite falcon trade in the Middle EastUnder the Radar Popularity of the birds of prey has been ‘soaring’ despite doubts over the legality of sourcing and concerns for animal welfare
-
A running list of the international figures Donald Trump has pardonedin depth The president has grown bolder in flexing executive clemency powers beyond national borders
-
Mixed nuts: RFK Jr.’s new nutrition guidelines receive uneven reviewsTalking Points The guidelines emphasize red meat and full-fat dairy
-
A running list of the international figures Donald Trump has pardoned
in depth The president has grown bolder in flexing executive clemency powers beyond national borders
-
Trump pulls US from key climate pact, other bodiesSpeed Read The White House removed dozens of organizations from US participation
-
What is the Donroe Doctrine?The Explainer Donald Trump has taken a 19th century US foreign policy and turbocharged it
-
A running list of the US government figures Donald Trump has pardonedin depth Clearing the slate for his favorite elected officials
-
‘Space is one of the few areas of bipartisan agreement in Washington’Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Trump fears impeachment if GOP loses midtermsSpeed Read ‘You got to win the midterms,’ the president said
-
Nicolás Maduro: from bus driver to Venezuela’s presidentIn the Spotlight Shock capture by US special forces comes after Maduro’s 12-year rule proved that ‘underestimating him was a mistake’
-
Venezuela’s Trump-shaped power vacuumIN THE SPOTLIGHT The American abduction of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has thrust South America’s biggest oil-producing state into uncharted geopolitical waters
