Harris also said she would oppose Jewish settlement expansion.

By Lauren Marcus, World Israel News

Just before the U.S. presidential election, Democratic vice presidential candidate Kamala Harris promised that the Biden administration would take “immediate steps” to restore aid to the Palestinians, including reopening the Palestine Liberation Organization’s mission in Washington, D.C.

Speaking to Arab American News, Harris said, “We will take immediate steps to restore economic and humanitarian assistance to the Palestinian people, address the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza, reopen the U.S. consulate in East Jerusalem, and work to reopen the PLO mission in Washington.”

Harris’s decision to speak with the Dearborn, Michigan-based outlet is part of an effort to win over Arab American voters. Michigan is a battleground state with a heavy Arab presence.

“Joe and I also believe in the worth and value of every Palestinian and every Israeli and we will work to ensure that Palestinians and Israelis enjoy equal measures of freedom, security, prosperity and democracy,” she said.

Directly opposing Trump’s recent approval of building in Judea and Samaria, Harris said, “We are committed to a two-state solution, and we will oppose any unilateral steps that undermine that goal. We will also oppose annexation and settlement expansion.”

Harris’ words could be construed as a departure from statements on Biden’s site, which laud his “record of unstinting support for Israel.”

“Joe Biden’s stalwart support for Israel and his commitment to protect Israel’s security and strengthen our two nations’ partnership is deeply personal and spans his entire career,” his site reads.

Harris’ promise to reopen the PLO mission in Washington D.C. is a direct reversal of a Trump administration policy.

In 2018, President Trump closed the PLO mission, citing the Palestinian Authority’s resistance to engage in negotiations with Israel.

State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert said at the time, “We have permitted the PLO office to conduct operations that support the objective of achieving a lasting, comprehensive peace between Israelis and the Palestinians.”

“However, the PLO has not taken steps to advance the start of direct and meaningful negotiations with Israel.”

“The PLO has condemned a U.S. peace plan they have not yet seen and refused to engage with the U.S. government with respect to peace efforts and otherwise,” read a State Department statement on the closure.

While Israel regards the PLO as a terrorist organization, PLO missions act as de-facto Palestinian embassies and represent Palestinian Authority interests in countries across the world.

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The Palestinians’ envoy to the US says he and his family’s US residency status were revoked and his his bank accounts were closed.

By: World Israel News Staff

Husam Zomlot, who until recently served as the Palestinians’ envoy to the US, told a Hezbollah-linked media outlet that he and his family’s residency status were recently revoked.

The move follows the US’ recent decision to shutter the Palestinians’ diplomatic mission in Washington, in addition to a string of massive cuts in American aid to Palestinian organizations and agencies, including their United Nations body, UNRWA. In total the US has eliminated over $500 million in aid to various Palestinian agencies and government organizations.

Zomlot confirmed to a Lebanon-based news site called Al-Mayadeen that US authorities had canceled his and his family’s visas and demanded that they leave America immediately. In addition, he claimed his bank accounts had also been closed.

Prior to the move, Zomlot and his family had been granted entry visas and immigration status permitting them to reside in the US until 202o. Earlier in the year, however, Zomlot had been recalled to Ramallah as part of the Palestinian Authority’s boycott of the US and all Trump officials since the US announced it recognizes Jerusalem as Israel’s capital in December of 2017.

According to the report in Al-Mayadeen, Zomlot characterized the steps as part of the US response to Palestinian rejection of US President Donald Trump’s “deal of the century” Mideast peace plan, which has yet to be unveiled. The PA, including its president Mahmoud Abbas, has consistently vowed to reject the plan, notwithstanding the fact that its terms remain largely unknown.

Zomlot also accused Israel of being the ultimate cause of the US’ change of course in its approach to the Palestinians.

Trump, for his part, recently stated that the Palestinians would not receive any more aid until they return to negotiations with Israel to hammer out a lasting settlement to the decades-old conflict.

Zomlot recently made the news as a footnote in the ongoing anti-Semitism scandals plaguing UK Labour party leader Jeremy Corbyn, whose attendance at Zomlot’s wedding several years back was questioned by the Daily Mail based on accusations of Holocaust denial launched at Zomlot.

In 2014, Zomlot told the BBC that Israel was “fabricating” reports about ISIS’ beheading of journalists “as if they are fabricating also the story of the Holocaust, that it happened in Europe.”

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On Tuesday evening, Netanyahu praised the US’ decision to close the PLO mission in Washington.

By: Benjamin Kerstein, The Algemeiner

“The US made the right decision regarding the PLO mission in Washington,” said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday, according to Israel’s Channel Two.

“Israel supports the American actions that are intended to make it clear to the Palestinians that the refusal to negotiate and the attempts to attack Israel in international forums will not advance peace.”

The US announced that it would close the mission on Monday, giving the staff several months to vacate. The State Department said in a statement that the move was directly connected to the Palestinian Authority’s refusal to negotiate with Israel or to consider any peace plan put forward by the Trump administration.

“We have permitted the PLO office to conduct operations that support the objective of achieving a lasting, comprehensive peace between Israelis and the Palestinians since the expiration of a previous waiver in November 2017,” said the statement.

“However, the PLO has not taken steps to advance the start of direct and meaningful negotiations with Israel. To the contrary, PLO leadership has condemned a US peace plan they have not yet seen and refused to engage with the US government with respect to peace efforts and otherwise.”

“As such, and reflecting Congressional concerns, the Administration has decided that the PLO office in Washington will close at this point,” the statement added.

Israeli-Arab MK Ahmed Tibi blasted the move, telling Channel Two, “We are talking about [Trump’s] campaign of revenge against the Palestinian people and its leadership after they expressed their absolute refusal to consider his shocking ideas regarding what is called the ‘deal of the century,’ and the cutting off of relations with him after the embassy move.”

The US, said Tibi, has “lost its standing as a mediator in the political process.”

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US National Security Advisor John Bolton announced that the US “would not allow the [International Criminal Court] or any other organization to constrain Israel’s right to self-defense,” in response to Palestinian threats to pursue investigations against the U.S., Israel, and other allies in the international tribunal.

The post WATCH: US slams Palestinians’ threats to pursue Israel at ICC appeared first on World Israel News.

The Trump administration put plans in motion to shutter the Palestinian’s diplomatic office in the US, in addition to invoking the possibility of placing sanctions on Abbas’ regime.

By: AP

The Trump administration ordered the closure of the Palestinian diplomatic mission in Washington on Monday and threatened sanctions against the International Criminal Court if it pursues investigations against the U.S., Israel, or other allies. The moves are likely to harden Palestinian resistance to the U.S. role as a peace broker.

The administration cited the refusal of Palestinian leaders to enter into peace talks with Israel as the reason for closing the Palestinian Liberation Organization office, although the U.S. has yet to present its plan to resolve the Israel-Palestinian conflict.

Shortly after the State Department announcement, President Donald Trump’s national security adviser, John Bolton, launched a broadside against The Hague-based International Criminal Court. Bolton declared that the ICC “is already dead” to the U.S. He also threatened the court and its staff with sanctions if it proceeds with investigations into alleged war crimes by American troops in Afghanistan.

US stated that the closure of the PLO office was based on the fact that the Palestinians have engaged in no “direct and meaningful negotiations with Israel,” despite previous warnings, the State Department said. It said the decision was also in line with U.S. law, a reflection of congressional concerns and consistent with U.S. policy to oppose Palestinian attempts to bring Israel before the ICC.

US reaches limit with Palestinians

The administration had told the Palestinians last year that its mission’s closure was a distinct possibility unless they agreed to sit to down with the Israelis.

Instead of heeding the warning to resume talks, “PLO leadership has condemned a U.S. peace plan they have not yet seen and refused to engage with the U.S. government with respect to peace efforts and otherwise,” State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said in a statement. “As such, and reflecting congressional concerns, the administration has decided that the PLO office in Washington will close at this point.”

Bolton followed up in his address to The Federalist Society, a conservative, Washington-based think tank.

“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 said. “The United States supports a direct and robust peace process, and we will not allow the ICC, or any other organization, to constrain Israel’s right to self-defense.”

The Palestine Liberation Organization, commonly known as the PLO, formally represents all Palestinians. Although the U.S. does not recognize Palestinian statehood, the PLO has maintained in Washington a general delegation office that facilitates Palestinian officials’ interactions with the U.S. government.

Last month, the US canceled more than $200 million in Palestinian aid for projects Judea and Samaria and Gaza as well as the remainder of its planned assistance for the Palestinians’ U.N. agency, UNRWA.

Over the weekend, it announced it would cut $25 million in assistance for hospitals in Arab sections of Jerusalem.

Trump recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and moved the U.S. Embassy there, from Tel Aviv, in May. That led Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to break off contact with U.S. officials for what he called pro-Israel bias, and the opening of the new embassy was met with large Hamas-orchestrated Palestinian protests in which dozens were killed, many of whom the terror group claimed as members or affiliates.

US: ‘Direct negotiations are the only way forward’

“The United States continues to believe that direct negotiations between the two parties are the only way forward,” spokeswoman Nauert said in her statement. “This action should not be exploited by those who seek to act as spoilers to distract from the imperative of reaching a peace agreement.”

As for the ICC, Bolton questioned the legitimacy of the court and warned that the U.S. would thwart any attempt by its prosecutors to open investigations into Americans for alleged war crimes and other abuses in conflicts in Afghanistan or elsewhere. Bolton, a leading critic of the ICC said the Trump administration would impose sanctions on the court and take other measures to hamper its ability to function should it proceed with such probes.

“The United States will use any means necessary to protect our citizens and those of our allies from unjust prosecution by this illegitimate court,” Bolton said. “We will not cooperate with the ICC. We will provide no assistance to the ICC. We will not join the ICC. We will let the ICC die on its own. After all, for all intents and purposes, the ICC is already dead to us.”

Bolton said the U.S. would “not sit quietly” if the ICC came after it, Israel or other U.S. allies. He said ICC judges and prosecutors would be banned from coming to the U.S., their assets in U.S. jurisdictions would be frozen and they would face prosecution. Similar measures would be taken against any company or state that assists an ICC investigation of Americans, he said.

“No committee of foreign nations will tell us how to govern ourselves and defend our freedom,” he said.

The Clinton administration signed the Rome Statute that created the ICC but had serious concerns about the scope of the court’s jurisdiction and never sought ratification by the Senate, where there was broad bipartisan opposition to what lawmakers saw as a threat to U.S. sovereignty.

When George W. Bush took office in 2001, Bolton sought and received permission to travel to New York to ceremonially “unsign” the document at the United Nations.

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