Hebron Palestinian bucks PA boycott, accepts Trump’s Bahrain invitation

The first to ignore the Palestinian Authority boycott on US President Donald Trump’s June 25 peace plan meeting in Bahrain, is Hebron Palestinian businessman Ashraf Jabari.

On Monday morning he received and accepted an invitation to the Bahrain meeting, where Trump is expected to unveil economic portions of his peace plan to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Jabari will go to as the representative of the Judea and Samaria Chamber of Commerce.

It’s a joint Palestinian and Israeli settler group, of which Jabari is a founding member.

“This is a good step,” Jabari told The Jerusalem Post.

“I will be going there as a representative of the Judea and Samaria Chamber of Commerce together with other representatives of the chamber,” Jabari said.

“I have seen that the PA and other factions are calling for a boycott,” Jabari said. “I do not know about other Palestinian businessman who have agreed attend.

“I only heard that [businessman] Bashar Al-Masri said he received an invitation and is not going. In the next few days I will be consulting with my friends about our participation in the conference,” Jabari said.

He added that he what was significant to him was the economic opportunity the gathering provided and not any connection it might have to a larger diplomatic deal.

Iis an important economic gathering and it is only natural that businessmen are invited, Jabari said.

Earlier this month Jabari announced the formation of a new Palestinian political Reform and Development party, with an aim to focus on economic prosperity for Palestinians.

Last week he hosted a special kosher Iftar celebration in Hebron with Palestinian businessmen and settler leaders.