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Palestinians reject U.S. Mideast peace plan as 'snow job'

By Clyde Hughes
Palestinians rally Monday against a proposed U.S. peace deal in Ramallah, West Bank. Photo by Debbie Hill/UPI
1 of 6 | Palestinians rally Monday against a proposed U.S. peace deal in Ramallah, West Bank. Photo by Debbie Hill/UPI | License Photo

June 24 (UPI) -- Palestinians gathered in the West Bank on Monday to rally against what they consider a "snow job" Mideast peace plan unveiled by the Trump administration.

About 2,000 protested in Ramallah, with one demonstrator holding a coffin to represent the chance the deal has in winning over Palestinians. The demonstrations are aimed to draw attention ahead of peace talks between U.S. and Middle East officials this week in Bahrain.

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Leaders for two of the principal players, the Palestinian Authority and Israel, will not attend. Palestinian leaders are boycotting the event because they say it doesn't address longstanding political issues, and Israel was not invited.

Palestinians staged similar rallies Monday in Hebron, Bethlehem, Jenin, Nablus, Tulkarm, Salfit and Qalqilya.

"This is a nice snow job," Sam Bahour, chair of Americans for a Vibrant Palestinian Economy, told Bloomberg. "[Jared Kushner is] wasting time and taxpayers' dollars trying to whitewash 52 years of military occupation."

Kushner, a point person for the Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations so far, has been silent on political issues of the conflict while pushing hard on the economic portion of the plan.

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"Economic progress can only be achieved with a solid economic vision and if the core political issues are resolved," the presidential adviser said last month.

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