Iran: Arab countries opened door for 'Deal of the Century'

Arab countries’ normalisation with Israel has paved the way to the United States (US) to take unilateral decisions against the Palestinians and announcing its peace plane, Iranian foreign minister announced yesterday.

“In recent years, some Arab countries supported American projects against the Palestinians and the so-called Deal of the Century,” Mohammad Javad Zarif told local media. “They [Arab countries] had not stood against the US and Israel, instead they have allied with them against Palestine,” he said.

The Arab governments’ stance, Zarif pointed out, had contributed to “weakening the Arab countries’ image and encouraging the Americans to announce their anti-Palestinian plans.”

On 28 January, the US President Donald Trump announced his Middle East plan which would set up a Palestinian state with strict conditions but allow Israel to take over long-contested Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank. The plan was announced in a joint press conference in Washington in the presence of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with no Palestinians present.

The United Nations (UN) rejected the deal, saying it is not based along with UN guidelines but is an imposition of Trump’s own vision of a two-state solution. The deal was also rejected by all Palestinian parties. It was also rejected by the League of Arab States, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, the African Union, and many other countries, including Turkey.

Read:  Official Arab support for Palestine falls while support in the West grows