Palestinians Skeptical About Israeli Economic Measures Announced Ahead of Biden Visit
They say that steps to help the Palestinian economy should not replace the political track
US President Joe Biden landed in Israel on Wednesday, kicking off his Middle East visit that will include a quick meeting with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas on Friday in the West Bank city of Bethlehem, before he heads to Jedda, Saudi Arabia.
Palestinian leaders are frustrated with President Biden, believing that the US president has let them down by not fulfilling the promises he made during his campaign.
Then-candidate Biden, who defeated former President Donald Trump in 2020, pledged to reopen the US consulate in Jerusalem once elected. The US administration has yet to act on the president’s promise despite repeatedly saying that it remains committed to reopening its diplomatic mission.
We are still under occupation; therefore, all these offerings are meaningless. Biden should exert pressure on Israel and use America’s clout to force Israel to talk to the PA.
Former President Trump moved Washington’s embassy to Jerusalem from Tel Aviv in 2018 and shut down a separate facility in Jerusalem that served as a consulate for Palestinians.
“We only hear empty words and no results,” said Jibril Rajoub, secretary general of the Central Committee of the secular Fatah movement led by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.
During his speech on the tarmac, President Biden reaffirmed his commitment to the two-state solution to the Israel-Palestinian conflict.
“Greater peace. Greater stability. Greater connection. It’s critical. It’s critical, if I might add, for all the people of the region, which is why we’ll be – we’ll discuss my continued support – even though I know it’s not in the near-term – a two-state solution. That remains, in my view, the best way to ensure the future of equal measure of freedom, prosperity, and democracy for Israelis and Palestinians alike,” Biden said.
A day ahead of President Biden’s visit, Israel announced a battery of economic steps intended to help the Palestinian economy that includes the registration of 5,500 stateless Palestinians, who do not appear in the Palestinian population registry, and an additional 1,500 work permits for Palestinians in Gaza, as well as opening a new crossing in the northern West Bank to allow Israeli-Arabs to enter the northern West Bank.
Former PA Minister of Higher Education Dr. Sabri Saidam, who is deputy secretary-general of the Fatah party headed by Abbas, told The Media Line that President Biden should look at the Palestinians and Israelis evenly.
“Talking about the security of Israel, talking about the ever-lasting friendship with the Israeli people, there has to be an ever-lasting friendship with the Palestinian people. Telling Israel that it has to end its occupation is not a bad thing, you don’t make many Israelis upset if you say ‘let’s come to coexistence and action that,’” Saidam said.
A politically weakened Abbas wants the US president to help kick-start the peace process with Israel and reopen the Palestine Liberation Organization office in Washington, among other things; but no major announcement is expected.
“There’s an expectation on the part of the Palestinian people to see the deeds being actioned – that the American administration meets its own agenda of pressing for a lasting peace, for a two-state solution, for self-determination for the Palestinians, and the end of conflict,” Saidam said.
Naseem Abdo, a shop owner in Jenin, told The Media Line that these measures are a good first step, but they are not enough. He called on the president to translate his words and promises into actions.
“We are still under occupation; therefore, all these offerings are meaningless. Biden should exert pressure on Israel and use America’s clout to force Israel to talk to the PA,” he said.
President Biden is scheduled to visit the Augusta Victoria Hospital in east Jerusalem on Friday morning before heading to Bethlehem for a meeting with Abbas. He is expected to announce $100 million in US assistance to the Palestinian hospitals network in east Jerusalem, according to Axios.
The US called on wealthy Gulf states – the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Qatar – to match the US aid with their own $100 million in assistance.
But many Palestinians are skeptical about Washington’s approach, attorney Moien Odeh, who specializes in human rights and international law, and is an expert on Palestinian affairs, told The Media Line. He says that Palestinians shouldn’t build up their hopes on these economic steps because “they know Israel can reverse them at any time.”
“I believe most, if not all, of Palestinians are not betting on Biden’s visit, but many of them would be happy to see any kind of improvement in their economic and daily lives, although many of these promises are closely related to the security situation. Even if Israel promised to increase the number of working permits or provide any other improvements, if anything happens tomorrow these improvements will be canceled immediately,” Odeh said.
Palestinians and Israelis know that these steps don’t replace the political path. It’s a problem. Israel and, unfortunately, even the Palestinians’ leadership are trying to market these improvements as a kind of replacement to the political path.
Managing the conflict by putting greater emphasis on the economic track and marginalizing the political track is no solution, he says.
“Palestinians and Israelis know that these steps don’t replace the political path. It’s a problem. Israel and, unfortunately, even the Palestinians’ leadership are trying to market these improvements as a kind of replacement to the political path, but with every small incident we are reminded that any kind of economic (measure) is temporary,” he said.
Criticism of President Biden also is coming from Palestinian-American citizens. Fadi Qur’aan, a dual citizen, told The Media Line that he’s concerned about the US policy toward the Palestinians.
“The core demand is that US government and the State Department must end their racist and discriminatory policies toward Palestinian Americans,” he said.
Qur’aan notes that there have been cases of Palestinians being murdered by Israeli military forces, referring to the killing of Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh in Jenin in the West Bank.
He accused Israel of “stealing thousands of acres from Palestinian-Americans citizens and the State Department should be defending the rights of their citizens based on American law. And yet it’s completely ignoring these violations,” Qur’aan said.
