Israeli Officials React to Mahmoud Abbas's Statements Against the U.S.

Israeli officials reacted to the strong remarks made by Mahmoud Abbas, the President of the Palestinian Authority, against the United States. Among them, the Israeli Defense Minister stated that Mahmoud Abbas has 'lost his ability to discern,' while the Israeli Minister of Education said he has 'reached the end of the line.' On Sunday, January 14, during a meeting of the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) Central Council in Ramallah, which was held to discuss the recent U.S. recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, Mahmoud Abbas delivered an unprecedented speech against the U.S., stating that the U.S. peace plan is not a 'deal of the century' but a 'slap of the century.' According to the Associated Press, the Palestinian Authority President announced that Palestinians will never accept the U.S. plan and added the Arabic curse 'yakhreb baytak' (may your house be destroyed) in response to a recent tweet from Donald Trump, the U.S. President, warning about cutting U.S. financial aid to Palestinians. About two weeks ago, Trump tweeted that Palestinians are not showing readiness to return to peace negotiations with Israel and that the U.S. might stop its annual financial aid amounting to hundreds of millions of dollars, especially since Palestinians have never appreciated this aid. However, Mahmoud Abbas called Trump's writings 'shameful' in his speech on Sunday. According to the Associated Press, Avigdor Lieberman, the Israeli Defense Minister, said on Monday to the army radio that Mahmoud Abbas has turned to confrontation with Israel and the U.S. instead of peace negotiations. Lieberman also stated in an interview with the 'Ynet' news site that Mahmoud Abbas 'is trying to destroy all our homes; the homes of Palestinians, Americans, and Jews.' According to Lieberman, 'Mahmoud Abbas wants to ensure that there is no successor for him; the government is not transferred to a successor regularly; yet on the other hand, he avoids holding elections; (while) the entire moderate Arab world has told him that if it comes to a choice between you and America, we will side with America.' He said, 'Palestinians constantly refrain from reaching a solution to the conflict with Israelis... and Abu Mazen (Mahmoud Abbas) is accustomed to breaking the frameworks in his meetings with Israeli leaders... and finds a reason for a negative response.' Avigdor Lieberman added, 'Abu Mazen does not want an agreement with Israel. His goal is to exhaust Israel on the international stage and he thinks he has the support of the majority in the global arena.' The Israeli Defense Minister also said that his country will not stop security cooperation with the Palestinian Authority unless the Palestinians decide to do so. Naftali Bennett, the Minister of Education and leader of the 'Jewish Home' party, also described Mahmoud Abbas's tone on Monday in an interview with the army radio as the last strong cry of a dying man, adding that he has reached the end of the line. The PLO Central Council meeting to review the organization's actions against Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel continued on Monday in Ramallah. Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad have boycotted the two-day PLO meeting, which drew criticism from Mahmoud Abbas. Abbas's criticism of the U.S. government comes at a time when he expressed readiness to cooperate with Washington to reach a 'historic peace agreement' with Israel during meetings last year with Donald Trump. The Trump administration last year made several attempts to resume peace talks between Israel and Palestinians by sending delegations led by Jared Kushner, the senior advisor to the U.S. President. Last month, Donald Trump recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and ordered the process of transferring the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to that city to begin. This decision faced opposition from Palestinians and 128 countries. However, Benjamin Netanyahu, the Prime Minister of Israel, called the U.S. decision 'historic' and 'brave,' stating that recognizing historical truth helps the peace process and 'Israel's hand for peace remains extended to Palestinians and all neighbors.' The Israeli Prime Minister also stated that the U.S. decision does not change the current situation in Jerusalem and that full freedom for followers of all religions is respected.