Abdullah Reaffirms Jordanian Support for Palestinians During Rare Ramallah Visit
Jordan’s king makes first trip to West Bank since 2017 as foreign ministers of 4 Arab countries, Blinken meet in southern Israel
Jordan’s King Abdullah II met Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah on Monday, in the monarch’s first trip to the West Bank since 2017. The visit comes less than a year after increased friction in Jerusalem sparked an 11-day war between Israel and Hamas.
Palestinian officials blame the tensions on continued visits by Jewish Israelis to the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, and they warn that the visits during the upcoming Muslim holy month of Ramadan will be like “pouring oil on the fire.”
Abdullah’s visit coincided with another meeting, taking place in southern Israel, that brought together foreign ministers from four Arab countries, Israel and the US, which was dubbed as “historic” by the host country.
During the meeting in Ramallah, which also was attended by Jordan’s crown prince and foreign minister, Abdullah underscored the importance of security and stability, saying that they cannot be achieved without reaching a just and comprehensive peace on the basis of the two-state solution, which guarantees the establishment of an independent Palestinian state on the June 4, 1967 lines with east Jerusalem as its capital.
“All Israeli unilateral measures have to be halted, especially in Al-Quds city and at the Al-Aqsa Mosque,” the monarch said, using the Arabic name for Jerusalem. “These practices hamper any opportunity to achieve the aspired peace in the region. Jordan is exerting every effort to preserve the legal and historical status in Al-Quds city. All Islamic and Christian holy places have to be preserved under the Hashemite custodianship.”
The meeting took place following a series of normalization agreements signed in September 2020 between Israel and Morocco, Bahrain, and the United Arab Emirates, known as the Abraham Accords, which infuriated the Palestinians. Israel signed a peace agreement with Egypt in 1979, and signed a peace treaty with Jordan in 1994.
Abdullah skipped the meeting in southern Israel’s Negev desert and opted for the meeting with Abbas, where he assured the Palestinian leader of his support, and reiterated that Jordan will always stand with the Palestinian people and support them in the face of challenges, saying “we are closest to each other, and we are in the same boat.”
The main purpose of Abdullah’s visit to Ramallah, which lasted about two hours, was to discuss the spike in violence in the West Bank and east Jerusalem ahead of Ramadan, which begins on April 1.
Palestinian officials have frequently warned that the West Bank is on the verge of “exploding.”
Jordan has a special role as custodian of the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, the third holiest site in Islam. Thousands of Muslims flock to Al-Aqsa during Ramadan, which this year also will coincide with Passover and Easter.
According to Palestinian officials who attended the meeting, Abbas discussed with Abdullah “new efforts to revive” the PA’s lines of communication with the US and Israel.
The PA leadership in Ramallah is furious over what it perceives to be a total US abandonment of promises Washington made to the Palestinians.
Israel and the Palestinians have not participated in direct negotiations since April 2014, despite a recent flurry of meetings between Abbas or his top aide and Israeli officials.
Israel’s Foreign Minister and Alternate Prime Minister Yair Lapid met with Jordan’s monarch two weeks ago to discuss the same issue.
“We decided that we must act together to quell tensions and promote understanding, mainly ahead of the month of Ramadan and the Passover holiday,” a statement from Lapid said.
On Friday, Abdullah held a gathering of his own with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, and Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi in the Red Sea port city of Aqaba.
