The Dhaka Times Desk In a meeting of Palestinian leaders in Ramallah, the Palestinian president called the US ambassador 'a puppy'!
US Ambassador David Friedman expressed his full support for Israelis building their 'settlements on their own land' in the West Bank. Infuriated by his comment, Abbas said, the puppy said that they are building a home on their own land. He himself is a settler, his family is also a settler, this man is the US ambassador in Tel Aviv! What else do we expect from him?
Friedman and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reacted angrily to such comments by Abbas.
Speaking at a conference in Jerusalem on the 'global fight against anti-Semitism', Friedman said he (Abbas) responded by calling me a 'puppy'. Is it antisemitism or political discourse? It is not my responsibility, we leave it to you.
In a statement, US Middle East Affairs Ambassador Jason Greenblatt condemned Abbas's comments, calling them "grossly inappropriate". He said the Palestinian leader had to choose between hate speech or taking real action to improve people's lives.
Ambassador Friedman is known to be a strong supporter of Israel's settlement plans. He was one of the early proponents of Donald Trump's announcement to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital and move the US embassy there.
The Israeli government was happy with Trump's December 6 announcement, but the Palestinians were extremely angry. Since then, the Palestinians have been protesting against the US decision. Israel considers Jerusalem to be an integral part of the state and the indivisible capital. On the other hand, the Palestinians are determined to make East Jerusalem the capital of their future state.
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