PA pledges diplomatic and legal offensive against Israel after US meeting

The Palestinian Authority pledged to continue its legal and diplomatic offensive against Israel on the international stage, after a meeting with a high-level US delegation in Ramallah failed to produce any results, Palestinian officials said Thursday.

US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Israeli-Palestinian Affairs Andrew Miller led the delegation in talks Wednesday with PLO Executive Committee Secretary-General Hussein al-Sheikh and other PA officials.

There was no real change in the US administration’s position toward the latest developments surrounding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Palestinian officials said after the visit.

Speaking to reporters in Ramallah on Thursday, Palestinian Minister of Foreign Affairs Riyad al-Malki echoed the disappointment of the Ramallah-based leadership with the US administration, which he described as “weak.”

The talks in Ramallah came amid increased disappointment in Ramallah with the US administration’s failure to exert pressure on Israel to halt its unilateral measures in the West Bank, especially regarding settlement construction and daily military incursions into Palestinian communities.

Malki and other senior PA officials said the US administration has failed to fulfill promises it had made to the Palestinians, such as the reopening of the US Consulate in Jerusalem and the PLO diplomatic mission in Washington.

The officials have also repeatedly criticized the US and the international community for failing to put pressure on Israel to halt settlement construction and military incursions into Palestinian communities as part of the IDF’s ongoing counterterrorism operation.

Palestinians aim to go after Israel at the ICC

Malki said the Palestinian leadership was planning to pursue its diplomatic and legal campaign against Israel in the international arena, including the International Criminal Court.

Sheikh, who is seen by some Palestinians as a leading candidate to succeed PA President Mahmoud Abbas, said he had asked the US delegation to “put pressure on the Israeli government to stop all unilateral measures and find a political horizon that leads to ending the occupation and to implement international legitimacy,” a reference to United Nations resolutions pertaining to the Israeli-Arab conflict.

Sheikh also said he had emphasized during the meeting Israel’s “noncompliance” with the results of the two summits held since the beginning of the year in Aqaba, Jordan, and Egypt’s Sharm el-Sheikh resort.

At the summits, held in February and March by Jordanian, Egyptian, and US officials, Israel and the Palestinians affirmed their commitment to all previous agreements between them and to work toward a just and lasting peace. They also reaffirmed the necessity of committing to de-escalation on the ground and to prevent further violence, as well as working to end unilateral measures for a period of three to six months.

The Israelis and Palestinians also reaffirmed their commitment to advancing security, stability, and peace and agreed to develop a mechanism to curb and counter violence, incitement, and inflammatory statements and actions.

Israel’s policy of settlement construction and home demolitions “undermines the two-state solution, which is one of the principles of the current US administration, Sheikh told the US delegation.

“The Palestinian-American bilateral issues were discussed and how to bypass the unfair laws against the Palestinians in the US Congress,” he said, referring to the 2018 Taylor Force Act that stops American economic aid to the PA until it ceases its “pay to slay” policy of paying stipends to terrorists and their families.

Sheikh said he had discussed with the US delegation the financial crisis of the PA “in light of the cessation of US support and the continuation of Israeli deductions from the PA’s funds.”

The Palestinians say Israel has deducted hundreds of millions of shekels from the monthly tax revenues it collects on behalf of the PA in response to the stipends paid to security prisoners and the families of deceased terrorists.

During his visit to the West Bank, Miller met with residents of Turmus Aiya, north of Ramallah, and heard from them about the recent settler violence against the town. Many of the town’s residents are US citizens.

“Miller reaffirmed the unwavering commitment of the US to promoting equal measures of freedom, justice, dignity, and prosperity for Palestinians and Israelis alike,” the US Office of Palestinian Affairs said.