US didn’t consult Palestinians on June Manama meet: PLO

The U.S. administration did not consult the Palestinian leadership regarding an economic meeting slated for next month in Bahraini capital Manama, according to a member of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO)’s Executive Committee. In an exclusive interview with Anadolu Agency, Wasel Abu Yousef reiterated Palestine’s refusal to accept the terms -- both political and economic -- of the “Deal of the Century”, a backchannel U.S. Middle East peace plan details of which have yet to be made public. The upcoming meeting in Manama, Abu Yousef said, would most likely “give nothing” to the Palestinians. In a Sunday statement, the White House said the meeting would bring together “government, civil society and business leaders to share ideas, discuss strategies and galvanize support for potential economic investments and initiatives that could be made possible by a [Palestine-Israel] peace agreement”. Abu Yousef, for his part, responded to the statement by saying: “The Palestinian people don’t need a course in economics; they want an end of the occupation and the establishment of a state.” According to the White House, next month’s scheduled meeting in Manama is aimed at attracting investment to the region within the context of the proposed U.S. peace plan. Terms of the plan will not be officially unveiled until June, but critics believe it will call on the Palestinians to make a number of major concessions to Israel. Based on recent leaks in the Israeli media, these include recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and abandoning the right of Palestinian refugees to return to their homes and villages in historical Palestine.