US President Donald Trump's Jerusalem proclamation of Dec. 6 sent shock waves throughout the Middle East. Visiting Ramallah one comes away with the impression that the Palestinians are experiencing some sort of a political earthquake. Meetings that took place in recent weeks with US envoy Jason Greenblatt focused on a possible American peace Initiative. And so, the Palestinian leadership was taken by surprise when Trump made his decision on Jerusalem.

A senior PLO official close to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas reacted to Al-Monitor with anger. “This is not a peace initiative, but a declaration of war against the Palestinian people,” he said, talking on condition of anonymity. The PLO official said that intense deliberations took place in the president’s office in the immediate aftermath of the US recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

The analysis of the Palestinian leadership was that Trump is simply a supporter of the Israeli right wing and that he was influenced by two of his closest Jewish advisers — his son-in-law Jared Kushner and US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman, who is known for his close ties with the settler movement. The Palestinian leadership had warned Greenblatt that any policy move on Jerusalem would be perceived as a casus belli, ending Palestinian willingness to accept US mediation. Obviously, their warning was not taken seriously. And so, the sense of disappointment is double. The declaration reflects the fact that insufficient pressure was put on the White House by their Arab allies, as well as by their friends in the European Union.

Generally, the American move is seen in Ramallah as politically motivated. Apart from Trump's affinity with the Israeli right, he is mostly interested in appeasing his evangelical base at a time when he needs public support over the Russia investigation.