Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas met in Amman with King Abdullah II on August 8, 2018, and later he arrived in Qatar for two days of talks with the Qataris.
(Office of King Abdullah II).
What was strange about the Amman meeting was that the report about it was released only after the fact. In the press conference that followed, only Mahmoud Abbas appeared, with no Jordanian counterpart.
According to Ramallah sources, the king invited Abbas so he could update him on the talks that the king conducted in the United States about the Trump Deal and its repercussions on the current situation in Gaza. The meeting failed according to our sources. The king tried to convince Mahmoud Abbas to accept normalization with Gaza, but he refused.
Nevertheless, there is one interest shared by Jordan and the Palestinian Authority – the issue of the Palestinian refugees. Amman is worried that the deal will demand of Jordan to accept the refugees. Such a development could create a problem with Jordan’s Bedouins who want to expel the Palestinians. According to our sources, this issue was not discussed between Abbas and the king – only the Gaza situation.
What Abbas failed to achieve in Amman, he will try to secure in Qatar. Qatar was asked by the United States to donate $360 million for Gaza, and Abu Mazen will try to convince the Qataris to reject the request.
