Arab-American lobbyist claims Donald Trump backs two-state solution

The head of a coalition of Arab Americans that supported Donald Trump's campaign has said that the new president-elect will support efforts to bring about a two-state solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict.

Bishara Bahbah, founder and national chair of Arab Americans for Trump told Israel's Channel 12 that Trump "100 percent" supports the two-state solution and would pursue the policy in the White House.

"He now wants an end to the war and a lasting peace in the Middle East," Bahbah was quoted by Haaretz as saying, adding "that is what resonates with the Arab and Muslim communities".

"He recognises the need for Palestinians to have a state of their own," he said.

Bahbah, a Palestinian American who had previously been involved in the peace process, is one of a number of Arab Americans who switched support from the Democrats to Republicans in the 2024 US election citing Biden's policy towards Gaza.

"We have been warning President [Joe] Biden repeatedly to stop the genocide in Gaza," Bahbah said. "After he did not listen to us, I decided to join the Trump camp."

Frustrated with what he called "empty promises" by Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, Bahbah joined the Trump campaign in May after being invited to help form a political action committee, Arab Americans for a Better America.

Teaming up with other prominent Arab Americans, including Lebanese-American billionaire Massad Boulos - father-in-law of Trump’s daughter Tiffany - Bahbah began actively campaigning for Trump.

Many Arab and Muslim Americans also voted for third-party candidate Jill Stein or opted to not vote at all, amid frustration and anger at the Biden-Harris administration's support for Israel while it waged a genocidal war in Gaza.

Trump, however, presided over the most pro-Israeli administration in US history during his first term.

Although Bahbah said Trump was a different person from 2016 and 2020, his track record during his first term saw him move the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem and support the controversial Abraham Accords, which saw Israel normalise ties with several Arab states, while continuing its occupation of the West Bank and blockade of the Gaza Strip.

The Israeli government of Benjamin Netanyahu seems to be hedging its bets on Trump's track record, with far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announcing on Monday that he intends to annex the occupied West Bank in 2025.

During the announcement Smotrich hailed Trump's victory as an "important opportunity" for Israel, adding that "we were a step away from applying sovereignty to the settlements in Judea and Samaria [the occupied West Bank], and now is the time to do it".

His announcement follows earlier statements from Netanyahu in 2024 claiming the West Bank as part of Israel.

Since the formation of Netanyahu's latest government in late 2022 and the start of Israel's war on Gaza in October 2023, Israel has presided over an unprecedented expansion of settlements in the West Bank.

Raids by Israeli security forces and violence by illegal Israeli settlers in the West Bank have also sharply risen, with 780 Palestinians being killed since 7 October.

In 2024, the Israeli Knesset backed a resolution rejecting the establishment of a Palestinian state.