Israel is our strongest ally in the Middle East and it’s good to see a pro-Israeli president back in the saddle here in the U.S. What a contrast to the past 8 years of Obama’s constant anti-Israel policy.
The Trump administration is under fire after it blocked the appointment of a well-respected former Palestinian prime minister to a senior UN role seemingly because he is a Palestinian.
Salam Fayyad, a Western-educated technocrat, won plaudits from Israeli leaders and from the Bush administration for his reform efforts when he served prime minister of the Palestinian Authority in the late 2000s.
The 65-year-old had been tipped to become the new UN special representative in Libya, a role that would have nothing to do with the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians.
But his prospects at the job appear to have been dashed after Nikki Haley, the new US ambassador to the UN, objected to his appointment out of support for Israel.
The United States was disappointed to see a letter indicating the intention to appoint the former Palestinian Authority prime minister to lead the UN Mission in Libya,” Mrs Haley said.
“For too long the UN has been unfairly biased in favor of the Palestinian Authority to the detriment of our allies in Israel. The United States does not currently recognise a Palestinian state or support the signal this appointment would send within the United Nations, however, we encourage the two sides to come together directly on a solution.”
Dan Shapiro, Barack Obama’s ambassador to Israel, called the decision “stunningly dumb”.