GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Although Palestinians have generally welcomed the resignation of Jason Greenblatt, the Donald Trump administration's special envoy for Middle East peace, they do not believe his departure will effect much change. To many, it is one more nail in the coffin of the US peace plan, which they already consider dead on arrival. Greenblatt was one of the architects of the plan, the so-called deal of the century.

Trump tweeted Sept. 5 that Greenblatt will be leaving his post to work in the private sector. Greenblatt plans to depart after the long-delayed peace plan is fully unveiled, which was expected to be sometime after the Sept. 17 Knesset elections in Israel. He will be replaced by Avi Berkowitz, currently a deputy to White House senior adviser Jared Kushner, and Brian Hook, US special representative for Iran.

The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) has not released an official statement, but Omar Awad Allah, the Palestinian Authority's deputy assistant secretary of state for multilateral relations, told Al-Monitor that Greenblatt’s resignation indicates the US plan will not succeed. He noted that in the eyes of Palestinians, the plan represents an attempt to undermine their cause and to prevent them from establishing their own state.

Awad Allah also expressed the Palestinians' dissatisfaction with the United States under the current administration acting as sole mediator in the Middle East peace process, especially regarding the Palestinians. “We have severed political relations with Washington, and nothing binds us to them,” he said.