Abbas 'waiting on Trump' before new steps in Palestine-Israel negotiations

The White House is working on a new Palestinian-Israeli peace plan, but needs more time to put it together, US President Donald Trump told Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

Palestinian and US sources said Trump on Wednesday requested that Abbas, whose presidency expired in 2009, give him time to draft the proposal and avoid taking any measures that might impede the process Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported.

On the sidelines of the UN General Assembly meeting last week, the Palestinian government expected the White House to forward some form of a proposal or a position paper on the renewal of negotiations within the coming weeks, senior Ramallah officials said.

In an interview with the London-based daily al-Quds al-Arabi before his meeting with the Trump, Abbas confirmed that during Kushner's visit to the region in August, aides to Trump had requested a one month "time out" period to draw up proposals for renewing the negotiations. Trump reportedly agreed to the suggestion.

Senior Palestinian figures said the Palestinian Authority agreed to wait for a proposal from Washington prior to taking any significant diplomatic steps, said Haaretz.

Earlier this year, Trump reportedly yelled at Abbas during their meeting in Bethlehem in May, accusing him of deception over the Palestinian Authority's involvement in anti-Israeli incitement, media reported.

An angry Trump reportedly shouted at Abbas during a closed-door meeting last Tuesday over "direct involvement" in incitement against Israel, Channel 2 reported citing a US official who was present at the meeting.

"You tricked me in DC! You talked there about your commitment to peace, but the Israelis showed me your involvement in incitement [against Israel]," Trump is said to have shouted at Abbas.

The Palestinian leadership at the time denied the reports.