The Palestinians won’t come to the table since we recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel so Trump is trying to put more pressure on the Pallys.
The latest move is to shut down the Palestinian Liberation Organization’s offices in DC:
FOX NEWS – The Trump administration announced Monday that it is closing the Palestine Liberation Organization’s mission in Washington, citing Palestinian leaders’ resistance to peace talks and attempts to get an international court to prosecute Israel for alleged war crimes.
The announcement marks the latest blow by the United States against the Palestinians amid a stalled Mideast peace process.
“The United States will always stand with our friend and ally, Israel,” National Security Adviser John Bolton said during a speech to the Federalist Society. “The Trump administration will not keep the office open when the Palestinians refuse to take steps to start direct and meaningful negotiations with Israel.”
He added: “The United States supports a direct and robust peace process, and we will not allow the ICC (International Criminal Court), or any other organization, to constrain Israel’s right to self-defense.”
The White House has reportedly mulled shutting down the PLO mission in Washington since last November, unless the Palestinian leadership enters serious peace talks with Israel.
Bolton’s announcement on closing the mission adheres to a provision in U.S. law saying the PLO mission must close if the Palestinians try to get the ICC to prosecute Israelis for crimes against Palestinians.
“While the court welcomes the membership of the so-called State of Palestine, it has threatened Israel—a liberal, democratic nation—with investigation into its actions to defend citizens from terrorist attacks in the West Bank and Gaza,” Bolton said. “There has also been a suggestion that the ICC will investigate Israeli construction of housing projects on the West Bank.”
While I don’t think this will make the Pally’s come to the table, I do like the fact that they are shutting them down and reaffirming their commitment to Israel. The peace talks are a waste of time anyway because the Palestinians and the Muslim world behind them don’t really want peace.
I know that Trump is still pursuing it, but it really doesn’t bother me considering all of the other commitment’s he’s made to Israel.
If you want to listen to Bolton’s speech, you can do so below: