Palestinian tells of plan to abandon accords
RAMALLAH, West Bank — Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said the Palestinian Authority will no longer be committed to any signed agreements with Israel or the United States, after Israel’s pledge to annex large parts of the occupied West Bank.
It was not immediately clear how the announcement, which was made at a Palestinian leadership meeting late Tuesday, would be implemented.
The Oslo accords and other agreements in the
1990s created the Palestinian Authority and govern its political, economic and security relations with Israel.
“The Palestine Liberation Organization and the State of Palestine are no longer committed to all signed agreements and understandings with the Israeli government and the American government, including the security commitments,” Abbas said.
He said Israel will now have to “uphold responsibilities before the international community as the occupying power.”
He also announced that the Palestinians would step up their campaign to join international organizations as a member state, in defiance of the U.S.
Israel’s Foreign Ministry and the prime minister’s office declined to comment.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said he hoped security arrangements would remain in place. “I’m not exactly sure what to make of his statement, but I regret that he has decided to abrogate these agreements,” Pompeo told reporters in Washington.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to annex the Jordan Valley and Jewish settlements in the West Bank in line with President Donald Trump’s Middle East plan, which was rejected by the Palestinians.
Netanyahu formed a new Israeli government this month with his chief rival, Benny Gantz, after three elections and more than a year of gridlock. The coalition agreement allows Netanyahu to present an annexation proposal to the government as soon as July 1.
Israel captured the West Bank, along with east Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip, in the 1967 Mideast war. The Palestinians want all three territories for their future state, but the Trump plan would leave them with scattered clusters of enclaves surrounded by Israel.
Most of the international community is opposed to annexation, which many fear would make it impossible to create a viable Palestinian state.
It’s unclear whether Abbas, who has made similar threats in the past, will follow through on the latest announcement. The security coordination serves the interests of both Abbas and Israel because it is largely aimed at the Islamic militant group Hamas, his main rival.
The top United Nations envoy in the Middle East told Israel on Wednesday that it should abandon its plans to annex parts of the West Bank, warning that going ahead would violate international law and deal “a devastating blow” to the two-state solution.
Nickolay Mladenov also called on the United States, Russia and the European Union to work with the U.N. to quickly come up with a proposal to enable the four parties in the so-called Middle East Quartet to take up their mediation role and work with countries in the region for peace.
“Israel must abandon the threat of annexation,” he said. “The Palestinian leadership must reengage with all members of the quartet.”
Mladenov told the U.N. Security Council that in the coming weeks, all sides should work to preserve the prospect of a negotiated two-state resolution to the conflict.
“These efforts must begin immediately; there is no time to lose,” he said. “The fate of the Palestinian and Israeli people must not be determined by destructive unilateral action that cements divisions and may put peace beyond our reach in our lifetime.”
Mladenov, the U.N. special coordinator for the Middle East peace process, told the council that he would meet with Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh today “to understand better the practical side of the decision by the leadership and its implications on the ground.”
He said Abbas’ statement also calls for negotiations under international auspices, including by the quartet, to advance a negotiated two-state solution.
U.S. Ambassador Kelly Craft made no mention of Abbas’ statement but acknowledged concerns by many council members about the peace plan.
“What is needed right now, if we hope to take even a first step in the right direction, is for the parties to sit down with one another,” she said. “If this council is serious about wanting to see progress in the Middle East, then I urge each of you to look seriously at the steps you can take to encourage direct negotiations.”