Reuters, Dead Sea :
Jordan’s King Abdullah said peace would not be attained in the Middle East without the creation of a Palestinian state under a two-state solution that would be the basis of a comprehensive Arab-Israeli peace deal.
In a speech at the start of an Arab summit held beside the Dead Sea, King Abdullah said the kingdom’s western neighbor Israel was wrecking the chances of peace by accelerating settlement building in occupied Palestinian territory.
“Israel is continuing to expand settlements and wreck chances of peace … There is no peace or stability in the region without a just and comprehensive solution to the Palestinian cause through a two-state solution,” the king said.
Divided Arab leaders who are attending the one day summit on Wednesday will be seeking common ground to reaffirm their commitment to a Palestinian state, a longstanding goal that U.S. President Donald Trump last month put into doubt.
At a White House news conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last month, Trump indicated he was open to a one-state solution to the conflict.
The Palestinians and Arabs want Arab East Jerusalem – which Israel captured in a 1967 war and later annexed in a move not recognized internationally – as the capital of a future state encompassing the Israeli-occupied West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
King Abdullah, whose dynasty has custodianship over Muslim holy sites in Jerusalem, said any “unilateral” Israeli move to change the “status quo” in the Dome of the Rock and the Aqsa mosque would have “catastrophic” consequences on the future of the region, inflaming Muslim sentiment.
The summit on Wednesday is expected to endorse key Palestinian positions, signaling to President Donald Trump ahead of White House meetings with the leaders of Egypt and Jordan that a deal on Palestinian statehood must precede any Israeli-Arab normalization.
The Palestinian issue also serves as a showcase for Arab unity in a fractured region, where leaders often find themselves on opposite sides of long-running conflicts.
From their venue on the shores of Jordan’s Dead Sea, leaders from 21 Arab countries have a view of the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
President Bashar Assad is absent. He hasn’t been invited since Syria’s suspension from the Arab League following the 2011 uprising.
The 21 kings, presidents and top officials gathered on the Jordanian side of the Dead Sea, with a clear view of the Israeli-occupied West Bank on the opposite shore.
Syrian President Bashar Assad was absent; he hasn’t been invited since Syria’s suspension from the 22-member Arab League following his crackdown on a 2011 uprising that quickly turned into a brutal civil war.
The gathering came ahead of White House meetings in coming weeks between Trump and three Arab leaders – Jordan’s King Abdullah II, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
Trump hasn’t yet formulated a policy on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but has suggested the internationally backed idea of a two-state solution isn’t the only option on the table.
The Palestinians want to set up a state in the West Bank, Gaza Strip and east Jerusalem, lands Israel captured in the 1967 Mideast war.
Jordan’s King Abdullah said peace would not be attained in the Middle East without the creation of a Palestinian state under a two-state solution that would be the basis of a comprehensive Arab-Israeli peace deal.
In a speech at the start of an Arab summit held beside the Dead Sea, King Abdullah said the kingdom’s western neighbor Israel was wrecking the chances of peace by accelerating settlement building in occupied Palestinian territory.
“Israel is continuing to expand settlements and wreck chances of peace … There is no peace or stability in the region without a just and comprehensive solution to the Palestinian cause through a two-state solution,” the king said.
Divided Arab leaders who are attending the one day summit on Wednesday will be seeking common ground to reaffirm their commitment to a Palestinian state, a longstanding goal that U.S. President Donald Trump last month put into doubt.
At a White House news conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last month, Trump indicated he was open to a one-state solution to the conflict.
The Palestinians and Arabs want Arab East Jerusalem – which Israel captured in a 1967 war and later annexed in a move not recognized internationally – as the capital of a future state encompassing the Israeli-occupied West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
King Abdullah, whose dynasty has custodianship over Muslim holy sites in Jerusalem, said any “unilateral” Israeli move to change the “status quo” in the Dome of the Rock and the Aqsa mosque would have “catastrophic” consequences on the future of the region, inflaming Muslim sentiment.
The summit on Wednesday is expected to endorse key Palestinian positions, signaling to President Donald Trump ahead of White House meetings with the leaders of Egypt and Jordan that a deal on Palestinian statehood must precede any Israeli-Arab normalization.
The Palestinian issue also serves as a showcase for Arab unity in a fractured region, where leaders often find themselves on opposite sides of long-running conflicts.
From their venue on the shores of Jordan’s Dead Sea, leaders from 21 Arab countries have a view of the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
President Bashar Assad is absent. He hasn’t been invited since Syria’s suspension from the Arab League following the 2011 uprising.
The 21 kings, presidents and top officials gathered on the Jordanian side of the Dead Sea, with a clear view of the Israeli-occupied West Bank on the opposite shore.
Syrian President Bashar Assad was absent; he hasn’t been invited since Syria’s suspension from the 22-member Arab League following his crackdown on a 2011 uprising that quickly turned into a brutal civil war.
The gathering came ahead of White House meetings in coming weeks between Trump and three Arab leaders – Jordan’s King Abdullah II, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
Trump hasn’t yet formulated a policy on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but has suggested the internationally backed idea of a two-state solution isn’t the only option on the table.
The Palestinians want to set up a state in the West Bank, Gaza Strip and east Jerusalem, lands Israel captured in the 1967 Mideast war.
