Report: Trump furthers program for Palestinian refugees in Arab countries

Fatah sources told the newspaper that “Trump informed several Arab countries that the plan will include Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon.”

By YASSER OKBI/MAARIV
Updated: SEPTEMBER 12, 2018 01:06
White House Senior adviser Jared Kushner sits behind U.S. President Donald Trump during a cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington, U.S., November 1, 2017 (photo credit: REUTERS/KEVIN LAMARQUE)
White House Senior adviser Jared Kushner sits behind U.S. President Donald Trump during a cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington, U.S., November 1, 2017
(photo credit: REUTERS/KEVIN LAMARQUE)
US President Donald Trump announced to several Arab countries that at the beginning of 2019 he will disclose a citizenship plan for Palestinian refugees living in those countries, the London-based website Al-Khaled reported on Tuesday.
Fatah sources told the newspaper that “Trump informed several Arab countries that the plan will include Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon.” The source said that “the big surprise will be that these countries have already agreed to naturalize Palestinian refugees.”
Palestinian sources reported that a delegation of senior US officials headed by Jared Kushner is expected to arrive in several Arab countries in the coming weeks to seriously discuss the American initiative, including the tools to implement it, number of refugees, required expenses, and the logistics demanded from hosting countries for supervising the process of “naturalization of refugees.”
According to the report, Arab countries have already updated Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas on the program hours after the cessation of UNRWA’s founding, on August 31. “This is the third step in Trump’s deal of the century, following the transfer of the US embassy to Jerusalem and the cuts in UNRWA’s funds,” Arab officials said.
The sources said that Trump will use significant and tempting economical assistance in order to obtain the consent of host countries, which in Israel it was already welcomed and sponsored, the website reported.
The sources also added that “Jordan is currently the only one out of the three countries that will oppose the initiative due to its steadfastness in recent years on the return of Palestinian refugees to the lands from which they were expelled 70 years ago, and its refusal to enable their settlement on Jordanian land.”