According to Arab states, the proposed peace-keeping plan contradicts international law and UN resolutions.

Arab League Rejects Trump’s ‘Deal of the Century’
Arab League Council extraordinary meeting on February 1, 2020. Photo credit: AFP
Yahia Hatim
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Yahia Hatim
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Rabat – The Council of the Arab League has rejected the American-Israeli “Deal of the Century,” announced this week by US President Donald Trump as a solution for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The Arab League issued a statement following an extraordinary meeting of Arab States’ foreign ministers on Saturday, February 1, in the Egyptian capital Cairo.

The meeting came in response to Trump’s announcement of his “vision for peace” in the Middle East, on January 28. The American president shared a conceptual map on his Twitter account that shows his proposed two-state solution, with defined borders between Palestine and Israel.

Trump shared his suggested solution in three languages; English, Arabic, and Hebrew. However, he did not miss the opportunity to express that he “will always stand with the State of Israel and the Jewish people.”

In its press release, the Council of the Arab League stressed that this unilateral plan does not meet the fundamental rights and aspirations of the Palestinian people and is at odds with international peace standards and UN resolutions.

Arab states will not cooperate with the American administration to implement the plan, insisted the statement. It added that the Arab peace initiative endorsed in 2002 remains the only acceptable solution for the Arab world.

The Arab peace initiative calls for normalizing relations between Arab states and Israel, in exchange for a full withdrawal by Israel from the occupied territories, including East Al-Quds (Jerusalem), and a “just settlement” of the Palestinian refugee problem.

The Arab organization also expressed its adhesion to peace as a strategic choice to resolve the conflict, on the basis of a two-state solution in accordance with UN resolutions and with the Arab peace initiative, through serious negotiations in a multilateral framework.

The council also stressed the importance of working with influential international powers, such as the UN, that would take appropriate measures against any plan likely to prejudice the rights of the Palestinian people.

The “Deal of the Century” is a setback

Arab foreign ministers warned against any forceful implementation of the “Deal of the Century,” stressing that the US and Israel would be fully responsible for the consequences of such actions.

The league called on the international community to respond to any measures taken by the Israeli occupation on the ground, considering the new American plan as “inappropriate for achieving a just and lasting peace, since it constitutes a new setback for the efforts that have been going on for three decades.”

The Palestinian Cause and the Arab identity of Al-Quds remain central for the Arab world, stresses the communique. It also emphasized the league’s position on defending Palestine’s right to sovereignty over all its lands occupied in 1967, including its air and maritime territory, its natural resources, its borders with neighboring countries, and its capital of East Al-Quds.

The Arab League fully supports the struggle of the Palestinian people and their leaders. The league insisted it would not adhere to any agreement that ignores Palestinians’ rights of return and violates international law.

Morocco’s position

Morocco’s Minister Delegate for Foreign Affairs Mohcine Jazouli attended the meeting and expressed the Kingdom’s support for the Palestinian cause.

“The Kingdom of Morocco would like to reiterate its steady support to the Palestinian cause in order to reach a just and lasting solution to this issue which will satisfy our Palestinian brothers,” said the Moroccan diplomat.

A large number of diplomats and officials from Arab countries attended the meeting, including the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

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