World

Trump to uncover Mideast peace plan amid firm rejection from Palestinians

FILE - In this March 25, 2019 file photo, President Donald Trump smiles at Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, right, after signing a proclamation at the White House in Washington. Netanyahu has been a vocal critic of Iran over the years, accusing the Islamic Republic of sinister intentions at every opportunity. But the outspoken Israel leader has remained uncharacteristically quiet throughout the current crisis between the U.S. and Iran, not wanting to be seen as pushing the Americans into a military confrontation and wary of being drawn into fighting with Iran’s powerful proxy, the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)

President Donald Trump is set to reveal his administration’s Mideast peace plan in the latest American attempt to solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
The proposal is presumed to be very beneficial to Israel, and Netanyahu has praised it as a chance to “make history” and define Israel’s final borders.

The Palestinians seek the West Bank as the heartland of a future independent state and east Jerusalem as their capital. Trump also closed Palestinian diplomatic offices in Washington and cut funding to Palestinian aid programs.

Jared Kushner, a Trump adviser and the president’s son-in-law, has been the architect for the plan for nearly three years. He’s tried to persuade academics, lawmakers, former Mideast negotiators, Arab governments and special-interest groups not to reject his fresh approach outright.
But the Palestinians refuse to even speak to Trump, calling him biased in favour of Israel and are calling on Arab representatives to reject the Tuesday event at the White House. The Palestinian leadership has also encouraged protests in the West Bank.