Islamic Jihad Raps US-Led Manama Meeting, Urges Counteraction
TEHRAN (Tasnim) - A leader of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement denounced the "Peace to Prosperity" workshop that the US has held in Bahrain as a prelude to implementation of the so-called deal of the century which ignores Palestine and serves the interests of Israel.
In an interview with Tasnim, Khaled al-Batsh described the conference in Bahrain as a plot to normalize relations between Arab countries and the Zionist regime of Israel.
Bahrain is hosting the two-day workshop to discuss what the US has described as the economic part of Donald Trump's deal of the century. However, the Palestinian leadership is boycotting the Manama meeting, which kicked off on Tuesday.
Denouncing the Manama meeting as a prelude to implementation of the deal of the century, Batsh said Arab countries are bearing the costs this time.
Businessmen of politics and land dealers have gathered in the Bahrain conference with the common objective of wiping out the issue of Palestine, carrying out Israeli plots, normalizing the Arab world’s ties with the Zionist regime, and setting up a new treaty between certain Arab states and Israel, he added.
The Palestinian official also warned Arab governments against a muted response to the Manama conference, saying there is no justification for the participation of Arab states who are willing to establish relations with Israel.
If the Arab countries fail to safeguard Palestine strongly, they will not be able to defend their own lands in a future not too distant, Batsh cautioned, noting that Israel seeks to implement its plots in other countries.
The Islamic Jihad official proposed four ideas to counter the anti-Palestinian schemes, including close unity and cooperation among Palestinians and intensification of resistance and armed battle.
He also emphasized that the Palestinian Authority must back off from recognizing the Zionist regime and withdraw from the Oslo Accords, and called for the termination of security and economic cooperation between the PA and Israel.
According to the White House, the ongoing meeting in Bahrain aims to facilitate discussions on an “ambitious, achievable vision and framework for a prosperous future for the Palestinian people and the region".
White House senior adviser and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner opened the Bahrain workshop on Tuesday by saying that an agreement on an economic pathway forward was a "necessary precondition" for Israeli-Palestinian peace.