WASHINGTON; 11 Sep 2018; (AP) — The Latest on the Trump administration and the Palestinians (all times local):
The Palestinian Authority says it will not abandon its principles following the U.S. decision to close the Palestinian Liberation Organization’s office in Washington.
The spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Nabil Abu Rdeneh, says the Palestinian Authority will maintain its “commitment to the resolutions of international legitimacy,” according to a written statement released Monday.
Rdeneh says key issues, including the status of Palestinian refugees, “are more important than the relationship with the United States.”
The State Department on Monday announced the closure of the Palestinian diplomatic mission in Washington, saying the decision was made because no “direct and meaningful negotiations with Israel” are under way despite previous warnings.
The move is likely to harden Palestinian resistance to the U.S. role as a peace broker.
