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Is Trump planning a two-state regional conference?

In order to “close a deal’’ between Israel and the Palestinians, President Donald Trump wants to convene a regional two-state conference later in the year.
A person wearing a costume of U.S. President Donald Trump shakes hands with an ultra-Orthodox Jewish man during an annual parade marking the Jewish holiday of Purim, in Jerusalem March 13, 2017. REUTERS/Nir Elias     TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RTX30SHZ
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Ever since US President Donald Trump called Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on the phone on March 10, euphoria has prevailed within the top brass in Ramallah. “If Netanyahu ‘heard’ the conversation between Trump and Abbas, he didn’t sleep well that night,” Knesset member Ahmad Tibi (Arab Joint List) tweeted. And Tibi, as we know, enjoys a very close relationship with Abbas.

Palestinians had little hope from Trump, especially in light of the many publications over the wonderful friendship between the president and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. But perhaps this lack of expectation is exactly the reason why cautious optimism registers now in the Palestinian Authority (PA) Ramallah headquarters.

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