Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas addresses the UN in 2017. (AP/Seth Wenig) (AP/Seth Wenig)
Mahmoud Abbas

Between the coronavirus crisis and waning interest in the Palestinian issue, European representatives chided Abbas for his drastic moves.

By Baruch Yedid, TPS

The Palestinian Authority (PA) has received several “disappointing messages” from a number of European countries following PA head Mahmoud Abbas’ announcement that he was ending all agreements with Israel, a Ramallah official told TPS.

The source said that in recent days, European officials have expressed displeasure with Abbas’ move to revoke the PA’s commitment to signed agreements with Israel, following its declared intentions to declare sovereignty over parts of Judea and Samaria in coming months.

One message said that such a dramatic move should have been coordinated with the Europeans, and especially since they carry a significant economic burden which ensures the PA’s continued operations.

European representatives also told Ramallah that Europe is busy with the Coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis and that the level of attention to the Palestinian issue is on the decline, although this should not be read as an expression of support for Israel’s intentions to apply sovereignty.

The official further told TPS that in the Palestinian Authority there is a great deal of disappointment from Europeans’ positions alongside the feeling that the attitudes of the major Arab states are also inconsistent with the Palestinian Authority’s expectations of them taking actual action against Israel’s intentions.

The source noted that this is not the first time in the last year that the Europeans have disappointed Abbas.

Less than a year ago, Abbas asked European states to press Israel into placing ballot boxes in eastern Jerusalem during elections in the PA, but the Europeans told him they would not act against Israel before he published a decree on the date of the elections and would not confront Israel for the sake of a Palestinian domestic issue.

Abbas never announced the elections.

[coronavirus boxed]