Palestinian Authority asks US congress delegation in Ramallah to probe 'Israeli apartheid'

Palestinian prime minister Mohammad Shtayyeh has warned the United States that the situation in the Palestinian territories could explode if Israel is not pressured to return to the peace process, during a meeting with a delegation of 30 US lawmakers in Ramallah on Monday. 

Shtayyeh also called on the US Congress to form a special committee “to investigate the practices of persecution and apartheid carried out by Israel against the Palestinian people, which have been documented in many international reports, such as the recent reports of Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch”.

“Israel does not want the two-state solution or the one-state solution”, Shtayyeh told the Congressional delegation. “All it wants is the continuation of the fait accompli, which is a deteriorating reality that will lead to an explosion of the situation”, he said, according to the Palestinian state-run news agency Wafa.

Shtayyeh called on the US Congress to form a special committee “to investigate the practices of persecution and apartheid carried out by Israel against the Palestinian people, which have been documented in many international reports, such as the recent reports of Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch”.

PM Shtayyeh to members of the #US congress: Situation in Palestinian territories may lead to explosion - https://t.co/wU6HngeZV1 #Palestine pic.twitter.com/pOJVjtrhJ7

— al whit🍉 (@soitiz) February 21, 2022

The Palestinian prime minister also recalled the US unfulfilled promises to the Palestinian Authority, including the reopening of the US consulate in Jerusalem, and the revision of US laws against the PLO.

He also pointed to the Israeli retention of Palestinian custom revenues. A practice that is largely responsible for the current financial crisis of the PA, described by experts as the worst in the PA’s history.

The meeting followed an earlier meeting on Thursday, between the US House Speaker, Nancy Pelosi and Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas, which is the first high-rank meeting between US and Palestinian officials since the Biden administration took office. Pelosi had earlier met Israeli Prime Minister Neftali Bennet.

Our Congressional delegation met with President Mahmoud Abbas & Prime Minister Shtayyeh. We emphasized our unyielding commitment to advancing the safety & security for all living in the region & the need to pursue a just, enduring two-state solution to benefit all generations. pic.twitter.com/J3ZZYjbw9b

— Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) February 18, 2022

Palestinian-US relations had soured since 2016 after the Trump administration cut all funding to the PA and pledged to move the US embassy to Jerusalem in a departure from US policy that had avoided recognising the Palestinian-claimed city as the capital of Israel, which captured it in the 1967 six-day war.

Joe Biden had promised to re-establish ties with the PA. However, the US secretary of state confirmed in January 2021 that Biden will keep the US embassy in Jerusalem.

In December, the Palestinian ministry of finance revealed that it had received a $10.2 million dollars payment from the US government.

Earlier in February, Abbas held a phone conversation with the US secretary of state, Anthony Blinken. The US department of state then said that Blinken had discussed with Abbas the necessity for reforms within the PA, whereas the Palestinian presidency said that Abbas stressed on the importance of ending Israeli occupation.