Deal of the Century is 'bad news' for Middle East: Palestinian FM

The Deal of the Century will bring bad news for the region, Palestine's foreign minister said in a Moscow meeting.

2 min read

17 April, 2019

Palestinians have expressed distrust towards the infamous deal [Getty]

Donald Trump's anticipated “Deal of the Century” which seeks to find the ultimate solution for the Palestinian-Israeli conflict will bring bad news to the Middle East, Palestine’s foreign minister said at a meeting in Moscow.

Speaking at the Fifth Russia-Arab Cooperation Forum held in Moscow, Riyad Malki warned that forthcoming developments in US President Donald Trump’s Deal of the Century will spell trouble for Palestinians and prospects for their future state.

'The coming days and months will bring us bad news with the so-called deal of the century, which started with turning Jerusalem over to Israel and seems going to end with recognition of Israeli sovereignty over large areas of the occupied West Bank as demanded by Israeli Prime Minister (Binyamin) Netanyahu”, he said on Tuesday.

“These Israeli crimes and violations would not have happened in such a manner and would not have disregarded international resolutions and law if it wasn’t for the lax position of the international community toward this Israeli insolence and without the immunity and protection of the US administration for its crimes that helped it avoid accountability and prosecution until today,” Maliki added.

Trump's so-called "Deal of the Century" seeks to find a solution for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but most believe it will favour Israel.

Trump has been pushing a hard-line policy that favours Israel and last May recognised the divided city of Jerusalem as the Israel's capital, something that was condemned by most countries in the world.

Arab foreign ministers' call for an urgent meeting comes amid reports on Monday insinuating that the peace deal will not include a Palestinian state.

Little is known about the Trump administration's long-waited proposal to end the decades-long conflict.

US senior presidential adviser Jared Kurshner, Trump's son-in-law, has steadily pushed forward with the plan, travelling across the Middle East to garner support for key features of the deal.