Speaking at the emergency meeting convened Dec. 13 in Istanbul by the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas declared that the Palestinians will no longer accept the United States as a mediator in a peace process with Israel.
Israel’s right-wing settlement establishment was evidently thrilled when the Palestinian leadership took the conductor’s baton away from US President Donald Trump and dismissed him from the traditional role of American leaders as orchestrators of Israeli-Palestinian mediation. For them, the Palestinian decision was just as satisfying as Trump’s Dec. 6 recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. Jewish lawmakers displayed their pleasure in an enthusiastic Knesset reception for Vice President Mike Pence on his Jan. 21-23 visit to Israel, reflecting their closeness with the US administration.
