PA official: US preparing to approve Israel’s ‘colonialism’

Riyad al-Maliki, the Palestinian Authority (PA) official in charge of foreign affairs, on Friday described the US “Deal of the Century” as a “consecration” of the century-long Palestinian suffering of no independence, no sovereignty and no freedom.

“The US deal of the century is the consecration of our century old ordeal: no independence, no sovereignty, no freedom, no justice. And if they do not think that this situation will have an impact on the future of Israel and the region, one way or the other, they are the ones that are delusional, not us,” Maliki said in a speech at the London-based Chatham House think-tank, as quoted by the Wafa news agency.

He said the dead can in no way “be the future of Palestine. Our people have not struggled for so long and endured so much to simply change the size of their chains. They want freedom, not conditional liberty, they want sovereignty not autonomy, they want peace and coexistence, not domination and subjugation.”

“What future does the US plan offer to the Palestinian people? Well, a very similar one since all indicates this administration is preparing to give its stamp of approval to Israel’s colonial policies,” charged Maliki.

“The US administration has shown nothing but disregard for Palestinian rights and for Palestinian lives, for international law and the internationally recognized terms of reference, and for common sense and decency,” he charged.

Maliki expressed appreciation to the international community for having stood up against the US move to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and in defense of UNRWA, “but when it comes to taking the lead on peace efforts,” he added, “the world left the steering wheel in the hands of a reckless driver. We disagree with the view that we should wait till he goes over a cliff or runs over the Palestinian people to do something about it.”

He reiterated the readiness of the Palestinian leadership to negotiate a peace accord, based on the pre-1967 borders, under international monitoring holding accountable the parties and within a determined and binding timeframe.

The comments come ahead of the expected publication of the Trump administration’s peace plan, which is scheduled for June, after Ramadan and Shavuot.

The PA has been boycotting the US ever since President Donald Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital in December of 2017 and has rejected the US peace plan before it has even been unveiled.

Earlier this week, Maliki submitted a request to The Hague-based International Criminal Court (ICC) for legal action against the US over the relocation of its embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

Ramallah claims the US relocation of the embassy to Jerusalem was “in clear violation of international law.”

(Arutz Sheva’s North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Shabbat in New York. The time posted automatically on all Arutz Sheva articles, however, is Israeli time.)