United States announces closure of Palestinian mission in Washington

The United States announced the closure of the Palestinian mission in Washington. The state department, in a statement yesterday, said that PLO leaders had failed to engage with US efforts to bring about peace with Israel and attempted to prompt an investigation of Israel by the International Criminal Court.

The action against the PLO, which serves as the main entity representing the Palestinian people, is the latest in a series of measures by the Trump



administration against the Palestinian leadership. Over the past year, Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law and senior adviser, has repeatedly questioned Mahmoud Abbas' commitment to peace and the US president's so-called "deal of the century".

A senior Palestinian official called the decision a "dangerous escalation". The PLO, the internationally-recognised representative of the Palestinian people, opened the mission in 1994.