U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley launched a scathing attack on Thursday at PA President Mahmoud Abbas, accusing him of “outrageous” conspiracy theories about Israel and lacking the courage to secure peace in the region.
Haley made the remarks at a meeting of the U.N. Security Council on the Middle East. She compared Abbas with leaders like former Egyptian President Anwar Sadat, whom she said was “willing to step forward, acknowledge hard truths, and make compromises.”
Haley cited a speech that Abbas gave earlier this month where “He rejected any American role in peace talks. He insulted the American president. He called for suspending recognition of Israel,” Haley said. “He invoked an ugly and fictional past, reaching back to the 17th century to paint Israel as a colonialist project engineered by European powers.”
“A speech that indulges in outrageous and discredited conspiracy theories is not the speech of a person with the courage and will to seek real peace,” Haley said.
She said that while the U.S. was “eager” to pursue peace, “we will not chase after a Palestinian leadership that lacks what’s needed to achieve peace.”
‘A speech that indulges in outrageous and discredited conspiracy theories is not the speech of a person with the courage and will to seek real peace.’
– Nikki Haley, on Mahmoud Abbas’ remarks
Riyad Mansour, the Palestinian Ambassador, denounced the decision by the the t to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and move its embassy there as “null and void.”
“We remain insistent on respect for the law and our rights, and we reject this unilateral, provocative decision, which directly contravenes the Charter and U.N. resolutions on the matter. This decision is null and void and has no legal effect on the status of Jerusalem,” Mansour said.
“When they disrespected us a week ago by not allowing our great vice president to see them and we give them hundreds of millions of dollars in aid and support — tremendous numbers, numbers that nobody understands — that money is on the table, and that money’s not going to them unless they sit down and negotiate peace,” Mansour added.
