The Palestinian Authority gradually cut ties with the US during Trump’s first term, when Trump, 1. recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital 2. proposed a peace plan that envisioned Israel annexing all of its settlements 3. while offering the Palestinians only limited sovereignty over the semi-contiguous West Bank land that would remain
But two senior Palestinian officials who spoke to The Times of Israel ahead of Trump’s return to the White House said Ramallah would take a different approach during his second term, acknowledging that the lack of engagement with Washington led the US to bypass Ramallah completely as it brokered the Abraham Accords normalization agreements between Israel and several Arab countries
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas restored ties with Trump, sending him a letter wishing him well after the then-GOP presidential nominee survived an attempt on his life last summer
Days after Trump was re-elected, the two then held what interlocutors described as a “warm” call — their first since 2017 — during which the president-elect pledged to end the war in Gaza
Two months later, Trump played an essential role in securing the ceasefire and hostage release deal between Israel and Hamas that is still holding to date, albeit barely
Accordingly, Ahmad Majdalani said Ramallah was caught off guard when Trump weeks later announced his proposal for the US to “own” Gaza and “permanently” relocate all of its residents
