Israel MK Abbas refuses to meet the Palestinian president

Mansour Abbas, leader of the United Arab List (Ra’am), attends a conference in the northern Israeli city of Tamra on 23 March 2021 [Mostafa Alkharouf – Anadolu Agency]

Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas has been trying for months to meet Israeli-Arab MK Mansour Abbas, Israeli media revealed yesterday.

According to Israel’s Channel 12 news, Mansour Abbas, who has joined Israel’s government coalition, said that there was no time for “controversy” and has refused to meet with the Palestinian president.

“If I meet with [Mahmoud Abbas], it’s a controversy, and if I don’t meet with him, it’s a controversy,” Mansour Abbas said when asked about the matter. “Let’s let time do its thing.”

However, the Israeli Knesset member met with Jordan’s King Abdullah II in Amman yesterday. Palestinian President Abbas also met with the king yesterday where Abdullah reiterated his support for the two-state solution.

The two stressed the importance of maintaining the status quo at Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque, which is the third holiest mosque in Islam.

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