BETHLEHEM: Donald Trump makes the short trip from Jerusalem to Bethlehem Tuesday to meet Mahmud Abbas, who hopes to convince the unpredictable US president to remain committed to an independent Palestinian state. His talks in Bethlehem with the Palestinian president come after Trump on Monday made a heavily symbolic visit to the Western Wall in Jerusalem and met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Hossam Zomlot, an aide to Abbas, said that “if President Trump wants to mediate and leads us to a historic agreement, a major agreement, we are ready to be his partners”. It later annexed east Jerusalem and claims the entire city as its capital. After Israel and the Palestinian territories, Trump will head to the Vatican along with Brussels and Italy for NATO and G7 meetings.

Source: Manila Times May 23, 2017 02:48 UTC