The Palestinians threatened on Saturday to suspend all communication with the United States if the Trump administration follows through with plans to close their diplomatic office in Washington. The administration announced late Friday that the Palestinians had run afoul of a legal provision that says the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) cannot operate a Washington office if the Palestinians try to get the international criminal court to prosecute Israelis for crimes against Palestinians. The US said it wasn’t cutting off relations with the Palestinians and remained focused on a comprehensive peace agreement between Israelis and Palestinians. The threat of losing their office in the American capital could become another pressure point as the Trump administration tries to persuade the Palestinians to come to the table. That required President Bill Clinton to waive a law that said the Palestinians couldn’t have an office.

Source: The Guardian November 18, 2017 19:52 UTC