Trump says Jerusalem will be Israel’s ‘undivided capital’ under Middle East peace plan

[Black_cats]

Trump says Jerusalem will be Israel’s ‘undivided capital’ under Middle East peace plan

Palestinians leaders have called for a boycott of the plan

• Bel Trew @beltrew,
• John T Bennett @BennettJohnT
• 48 seconds ago

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/...east-israel-palestine-us-latest-a9306731.html
US president Donald Trump and Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu are releasing details of their Middle East peace plan, despite a boycott from Palestinian leaders.

Sending the room into a standing ovation with loud applause, Mr Trump praised Mr Netanyahu for his “courage” to “take this bold step forward.”


Under the White House plan, Jerusalem would be under total Israeli control, which denies Palestinians their aspiration to have the whole of east Jerusalem as their capital.




“But that’s no big deal,” Mr Trump joked, “because I already did that for you."

In this new plan, the Palestinians would have their capital within east Jerusalem - though it remains unclear what territory this would include.


✕




“We will never ask Israel to compromise its security,” he continued. “Can’t do that.”

In a nod to his own re-election bid, Mr Trump boasted, “I’ve done a lot for Israel.” He ticked off several things, including withdrawing the US from a nuclear accord with Iran.

The room again erupted in applause.

But it fell silent as Mr Trump declared he wants his plan also to do “great things for the Palestinians.”


Mr Trump predicted the plan would create 1m new Palestinian jobs and wipe out poverty in the group’s areas. He asked the Palestinians to “meet the challenges of peaceful coexistence,” including cracking down on the actions of and financing for groups like Hamas.

“America cannot care about peace more than the stakeholders in the region,” Mr Trump said, adding “all humanities” should find a way to coexist “in the holy land.”

More follows…

 

[Black_cats]

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=937110033353132

 

[jamal18]

Plan still unfolding. The sickening fundamental is the support of Israel's 'new friends' in the region; Saudi Arabia, Bahrein, UAE and Oman.

Yes, give the Palstinians an Indian reservation, and their Arab 'brothers' will force them to accept it.

Treachery at its lowest.

 

[Black_cats]

Trump's US-Israeli plan announcement: Why now?
Analysts say announcement of US plan for the Middle East could shift focus of Israel's election campaign.

by Mersiha Gadzo
4 hours ago

US President Donald Trump meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the White House in Washington DC [Kevin Lamarque/Reuters]
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• Netanyahu formally indicted in court on corruption chargestoday

The unveiling of US President Donald Trump's plan for resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict comes at a crucial time for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is facing trial on corruption charges and is also running for re-election.

Trump on Monday held separate meetings with the prime minister and his main rival, Benny Gantz, leader of the centrist Blue and White alliance, ahead of Tuesday's scheduled meeting with Netanyahu when the Middle East plan is expected to be revealed.

More:

• Trump plan will 'finish off Palestinian cause', PM warns
• The architects behind the US plan for Middle East peace
• 'Get Israel off our backs': Palestinians react to Kushner plan

Palestinian leaders have already rejected the plan amid concerns that it would not address Israel's 52-year occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem, raising questions about the timing of the announcement. Three years in the making, Trump's plan was set to be presented as his impeachment trial continues in the US Senate and as Israel's parliament had planned to hold a debate on Netanyahu's request for immunity from prosecution.

The summit appears to be a welcome distraction for both leaders, while some analysts have questioned whether the timing could provide a boost to Netanyahu ahead of the Israeli parliamentary election set for March 2.

"The timing of the release is politically expedient for both Trump and Netanyahu given their mutual legal and political troubles and impending elections, all of which happen to be coelescing around the same time," Omar Rahman, visiting fellow at the Brookings Institution's Doha Centre, told Al Jazeera.

Distraction from immunity proceedings
Some critics in Israel have noted that the timing of the announcement could be seen as an attempt to distract from Netanyahu's immunity proceedings.

Dahlia Scheindlin, a public opinion expert and political analyst, told Al Jazeera that the upcoming plan had "short-term distracted people from that".

Netanyahu was indicted on counts of fraud, breach of trust and bribery in November in three separate cases. On Tuesday, the Knesset was set to discuss whether it will establish a committee to discuss Netanyahu's immunity request regarding the charges.

But Netanyahu withdrew his request for immunity from prosecution, issuing a statement on Facebook on Tuesday in which he said the proceedings in parliament would have been a "circus" and he did not want to participate in this "dirty game".

White House to release Middle East plan on Tuesday: Trump
By withdrawing the request for immunity, Netanyahu opened the way for a trial on the corruption charges to begin. Israel's attorney general filed the indictment against the prime minister at a Jerusalem court hours after the announcement.

Netanyahu is also hoping to shift the media spotlight towards his diplomacy in Washington, which is "certainly playing to his strengths," Scheindlin said.

Scheindlin noted that pre-election polls in Israel have not moved much in the past year, with Netanyahu and Gantz in a dead heat, despite Israel holding two inconclusive elections and the charges being brought against Netanyahu.

While several commentators had suggested that Monday's meetings with Trump posed a political risk for Gantz, Scheindlin said that by meeting Trump, Gantz raised himself to "Netanyahu's level".

"In a way, Netanyahu took a risk having put Gantz in a position where he can look like a statesman involved in high-level diplomacy, which puts him on the level of Netanyahu," Scheindlin said.

Jordan Valley annexation threat
Israeli journalist Meron Rapoport told Al Jazeera that Netanyahu's main goal was to shift the focus of the election campaign from his legal problems to Trump's plan.

Reports in Israeli media have suggested that the plan could include the annexation of parts of the occupied West Bank, including the Jordan Valley, and the imposition of Israeli sovereignty on a number of illegal settlements there.

Rapoport said the key issue related to the timing of the announcement was whether Netanyahu would try to use the plan to push for annexation of some parts of the Jordan Valley in the weeks before the Israeli election while a "sympathising president" is in the White House.

"Sometimes history plays games and this plan is portrayed as the golden opportunity of the settlers and right-wing to annex large parts of the West Bank and it puts the idea of a Palestinian state off the table," Rapoport said, noting that Trump has been portrayed as sympathetic to the idea of annexation.

Competing for votes among the right-wing Israeli electorate, Gantz promised on January 21 to annex the Jordan Valley if he wins the election, adding that he would so "in coordination with the international community".

In a Likud campaign speech the same night, Netanyahu said he would apply Israeli sovereignty to the Jordan Valley and all West Bank settlements "without exception".

"Why wait until after the election if we can apply sovereignty over the Jordan Valley right now with broad consensus in the Knesset?" he said.

Despite the annexationist rhetoric on the campaign trail, Rapoport said he was not certain Israel would move to formally annex the territory.

"[It's] already considered to a great extent part of Israel. Most of the Israeli public doesn't see anything new here," Rapoport said.

"Annexation seems almost a natural thing because in the last 25 years, the settlements have become de facto part of Israel. The green line was erased in many ways, at least in the consciousness of Israelis."

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/01/trump-middle-east-plan-200128095743506.html

 

[Imran Khan]

They need more land not peace

 

[Oublious]

Lets see what that thing called Arab leauge will bark...

 

[FuturePAF]

“But that’s no big deal,” Mr Trump joked, “because I already did that for you."

Palestinians will just wait out Trump; 1-5 years.
Palestinian relations with the Arab nations will be the real test for this, especially in Jordan.

 

[PakAlp]

Nations like Pakistan Iran Turkey should stay quiet because its obvious the Arabs are in bed with usa and Israel, so what can they do to help Palestine because tomorrow the arabs can say get out to Pak, Iran, Turk and we would have no leg to stand on. They made the mistake when they betrayed and rebelled against the Ottomans. This is the unfortunate reality.

 

[Black_cats]

Trump peace plan gives Israel chunks of West Bank, creates Palestinian state
50-page political outline calls for four-year settlement freeze, but leaves many settlements intact, US officials say
By MATTHEW LEE and ARON HELLERToday, 7:06 pm

https://www.timesofisrael.com/trump...hunks-of-west-bank-creates-palestinian-state/

• View of the Israeli settlement of Ma'ale Hever, in the Har Hebron Regional Council on April 19, 2015.(Nati Shohat/Flash90)
  
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — US officials say President Donald Trump’s long-awaited Middle East peace plan calls for the creation of a State of Palestine with its capital in portions of East Jerusalem, ending speculation as to whether his administration, in preparing a proposal without input from Palestinian leaders, would abandon a “two-state resolution” to the conflict.
  
  The officials say the plan to be unveiled on Tuesday more than doubles the territory currently under Palestinian control, although it also recognizes Israeli sovereignty over major settlement blocs in the West Bank, something to which the Palestinians will almost certainly object. The Palestinians have already rejected the proposal, accusing Trump of being biased in favor of Israel as he has adopted policies that bolster Israel at their expense.
  
  
  The plan does call for a four-year freeze in new Israeli settlement construction, during which time details of a comprehensive agreement would be negotiated, according to the officials who spoke on condition of anonymity ahead of Trump’s announcement. However, it was not immediately clear if the freeze could be extended if a final deal is not concluded in the four years.
  
  Get The Times of Israel's Daily Edition by email and never miss our top storiesFREE SIGN UP
  
  The 50-page political outline goes further in concessions to the Palestinians than many analysts had believed was likely. However, it would require them to accept conditions they have been previously unwilling to consider, such as accepting West Bank settlements. It builds on a 30-page economic plan for the West Bank and Gaza that was unveiled last June and which the Palestinians have also rejected.
  
  Under the terms of the “peace vision” that Trump’s son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner has been working on for nearly three years, the future Palestinian state would consist of the West Bank and Gaza, connected by a combination of above-ground roads and tunnels, according to the officials.
  
  The officials said that both Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his main political challenger in March elections, Benny Gantz, had signed off on the plan. Netanyahu will be beside Trump as he unveils the plan at the White House.
  
  The event comes as Trump’s impeachment trial continues in the Senate and Israel’s parliament had planned a hearing to discuss Netanyahu’s request for immunity from criminal corruption charges. Netanyahu withdrew that request hours before the proceedings were to begin, but Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, is still expected to meet. The body had been likely to vote against immunity, dealing Netanyahu a blow.
  
  In the run-up to the March 2 election, Netanyahu has called for annexing parts of the West Bank and imposing Israeli sovereignty on all its settlements there. Israel captured the West Bank in the 1967 Mideast war, and the Jordan Valley in particular is considered a vital security asset.
  
  Security responsibility for the Jordan Valley would remain in Israel’s hands for the foreseeable future but could be scaled back as the nascent Palestinian state builds its capacity, under the terms of the plan, which says that statehood will be contingent on the Palestinians meeting international governance criteria.
  
  The officials said they expected negative responses from the Palestinians, as well as Turkey and Iran, but were hopeful that Jordan and Egypt, the only two Arab nations to have peace treaties with Israel, would not reject it outright. The officials said they expected Gulf Arab states like Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and others to cautiously welcome the plan.
  
  The reaction of Jordan, which would retain its responsibilities over Jerusalem’s al-Aqsa Mosque under the plan, will be particularly significant, according to the officials, who said Kushner and others were reaching out to Arab leaders ahead of the rollout.
  
  The Palestinians see the West Bank as the heartland of a future independent state and east Jerusalem as their capital. Most of the international community supports their position, but Trump has reversed decades of U.S. foreign policy by siding more blatantly with Israel. The centerpiece of his strategy was recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and moving the American Embassy there. He’s also closed Palestinian diplomatic offices in Washington and cut funding to Palestinian aid programs.
  
  Those policies have proven popular among Trump’s evangelical and pro-Israel supporters and could give him a much-needed boost from his base as he gears up for a reelection battle this year.
  
  But the Palestinians refuse to even speak to Trump and they are calling on support from Arab leaders. The Palestinian leadership also has encouraged protests in the West Bank, raising fears that the announcement in Washington could spark a new round of violence. Ahead of the announcement, the Israeli military said it was reinforcing infantry troops along the Jordan Valley.
  

 

[FuturePAF]

Nobody in the Mid-east expects this plan to be accepted. this is all to placate Trump's ego based on his childish understanding of the Mid-east conflict.

Without honest negotiations, the mid-east is shifting to a demographic showdown.

High birth rates of religious jews will outnumber secular jews, and the pressure cooker will just keep intensifying as the settlers will demand more and more land. Palestinians birth rates are also high at 4.01, so its only a matter of time.

 

[AZADPAKISTAN2009]

This is not the recognized plan

No one internationally accept this approach

 

[sammuel]

~

Before reading the plan there are two disturbing issues :

First ,the timing.

We are a month away from a third elections. Those elections where supposed to be about whether to replace Netanyahu.

Now all the discussion would be about about the this plan. This turns the table on everything that was anticipated to happen in this elections.

People here have been waiting for peace long enough. Peace is important enough , and some would say " sacred " enough , not to throw such a plan on people a month before an election. But deserves serious discussion and consideration.


Second , the issue of the Palestinians.

They where against this plan even before it came out as they would have nothing to do with Trump.

I do not see how we can make peace with one side completely out of the picture.

Hope that at some point this changes , but at the moment , it sounds like one hand clapping.


~

 

[dalvash]

Plan still unfolding. The sickening fundamental is the support of Israel's 'new friends' in the region; Saudi Arabia, Bahrein, UAE and Oman.

Yes, give the Palstinians an Indian reservation, and their Arab 'brothers' will force them to accept it.

Treachery at its lowest.

Saudi Arabia was not mentioned, but Pakistan's other Arab friends, Bahrain, UAE, and Oman were mentioned in Trump's statement. Pakistan should support this plan as Saudi Arabia will soon have open diplomatic relations with Israel.

 

[Yongpeng Sun-Tastaufen]

~

Before reading the plan there are two disturbing issues :

First the timing.

We are a month away from a third elections. Those elections where supposed to be about whether to replace Netanyahu.

Now all the discussion would be about about the this plan. This turns the table on everything that was anticipated to happen in this elections.

People here have been waiting for peace long enough. Peace is important enough , and some would say " sacred " enough , not to throw such a plan on people a month before an election. But deserves serious discussion and consideration.


Second , the issue of the Palestinians.

They where against this plan even before it came out as they would have nothing to do with Trump.

I do not see how we can make peace with one side completely out of the picture.

Hope that at some point this changes , but at the moment , it sounds like one hand clapping.


~

I thought Netanyahu is president for life or something. Anyway, there isn't anymore democracy left in Israel. Israelis are from Russia. Figures they are as authoritarian as Russia is.

 

[Black_cats]

REVEALED: Trump's 'deal of the century' map for a future Palestine, Israel

West Bank and Gaza would be joined by tunnel, according to 'conceptual maps' published in new White House document

MEE staff
Published date: 28 January 2020 18:28 UTC|Last update: 25 min 4 sec ago
2.3kShares

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday unveiled new details of his long-touted plan to resolve the Israel-Palestine conflict.

The 181-page document contained conceptual maps showing how Israel and a future Palestinian state could look if Palestinians agreed to sign up to the plan, which was endorsed at the White House by Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Palestinian leaders have already rejected the proposals.

Notes on the map say that "all Muslims who come in peace will be welcome to visit and pray at the al-Aqsa Mosque", while the map features a proposed tunnel between the West Bank and Gaza, and a series of Palestinian enclaves along the Egyptian border in the Negev desert.

This is how the territories of Israel and Palestine would look under Trump's plan.

In more detail, the first map is entitled "The state of Israel".

The second map is entitled "A future state of Palestine".

https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/revealed-trumps-deal-century-map-future-palestine-israel