Middle East Monitor / September 4, 2020
Some Arab countries have been exerting pressure on the Palestinians to accept the ‘peace plan’ drawn up by US President Donald Trump, diplomatic sources have said.
The sources told Lebanese Al-Mayadeen news channel that Bahrain has rejected a request filed by Palestine to hold an emergency meeting of the Arab League to reject the Israeli-Emirati normalisation agreement which was agreed in mid-August.
“Bahrain has also rejected the Palestinian request to place a clause rejecting normalisation on the side-lines of the League’s regular session,” the sources said, stressing that “Bahrain has threatened Palestine that it would put a clause on its part to support normalisation and encourage the deal of the century,” in reference to Trump’s ‘peace deal’.
“There is a secret fierce battle at the Arab League,” the sources said, adding that “Palestine is fighting a battle against attempts to silence it and prevent it from rejecting normalisation.”
On 13 August, US President Donald Trump announced a peace deal between the UAE and Israel brokered by Washington.
Abu Dhabi said the deal was an effort to stave off Tel Aviv’s planned annexation of the occupied West Bank, however, opponents believe normalisation efforts have been in the offing for many years as Israeli officials have made official visits to the UAE and attended conferences in the country which had no diplomatic or other ties with the occupation state.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu however denied this saying annexation is not off the table, but has simply been delayed.
