Palestinian officials responded to President Donald Trump’s tweet threatening to defund the Palestinian Authority by saying they would not be blackmailed and that Jerusalem was not for sale. Meanwhile, Israeli officials said Trump had pulled off the P.A.’s “mask of hypocrisy.” In a pair of tweets, Trump said on Tuesday that “we pay the Palestinians HUNDRED OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS a year and get no appreciation or respect.
They don’t even want to negotiate a long overdue… peace treaty with Israel.” He added that, “with the Palestinians no longer willing to talk peace, why should we make any of these massive future payments to them?” In response to Trump’s tweet, Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas’ office said Jerusalem is “not for sale,” according to a tweet from the AFP. READ MORE
