Israel’s Channel 10 claims the US president made the prediction half-jokingly after Abdullah warned that many young Palestinians now want ‘one state with equal rights’
By TOI STAFF
Jordan’s King Abdullah II (L) and US First Lady Melania Trump (R) listen while US President Donald Trump makes a statement for the press before a meeting in the Oval Office of the White House June 25, 2018 in Washington, DC. (AFP/Brendan Smialowski)
US President Donald Trump reportedly told Jordan’s King Abdullah II at the White House a few weeks ago that, in the absence of a negotiated solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Israel will have a prime minister named Mohammed in a few years time.
Trump’s reported remark was detailed on Sunday night by Israel’s Channel 10 news, which described it as “sarcastic” and “semi-jocular,” but also as containing a grain of truth. The TV channel said its report had been confirmed by an Israeli and a former US official who had both been briefed on the White House meeting, but that the White House and the Jordanian Embassy in Washington, DC, have refused to comment on it.
According to Channel 10’s Barak Ravid, who later Sunday posted an English version of his story on the Axios website where he cited unnamed “French diplomats” as his source, the US president’s face-to-face comment to Abdullah was in turn relayed by the Jordanian king to the French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves le Drian, during a meeting they had in Amman on August 2.
Relating for Le Drian his White House conversation with the US president in late June, Abdullah reportedly said he had told Trump, “Many young Palestinians don’t want the two-state solution anymore, but would rather live together with the Israelis in one state with equal rights for all… The result will be that Israel will lose its Jewish character”.
Trump reportedly then replied, “What you say makes sense. … [In a one-state scenario,] the prime minister of Israel in a few years will be called Mohammed.”
Elsewhere in the conversation, as quoted by the TV report, the king reportedly urged Trump, “Don’t present your [peace] plan now: There are too many difficulties right now. There’s no need to hurry to present the American peace plan.”
To which Trump, unimpressed, reportedly responded: “I want to advance a peace agreement in the Middle East, because if my administration cannot achieve a deal, no administration will be able to.”
The monarch also reportedly complained that he had yet to even see the much-anticipated US proposal, and neither had anyone in Europe. As described in the Axios report, “The king said he stressed to Trump that, in order for the peace plan to be acceptable, it must be presented first to the relevant European and Arab states in order to get their input, and complained that this still hasn’t happened.”
The Channel 10 report presented the ostensible content of the conversation in Hebrew only. It said Trump had been speaking sarcastically and half-jokingly when he talked of an Israeli prime minister named Mohammed, but noted that there is a grain of truth in every joke.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (r) meets with French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian on March 26, 2018. (Kobi Gideon/GPO)
Many Israeli advocates of an accommodation with the Palestinians have long warned that if Israel cannot find a way to separate from the Palestinians, it risks losing its Jewish character or undermining its democracy. While Israel’s population is about three-quarters Jewish, there are almost as many non-Jews as Jews in Israel, the West Bank, and the Gaza Strip combined.
In public remarks when he welcomed Abdullah to the White House on June 25, Trump said that a “lot of progress” had been made in the Middle East, but did not identify specific areas of improvement. Abdullah had recently met in Jordan with Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law and adviser, who has been working on the US peace proposal.
Trump ignored a question about when he would make the plan public, but said “we’re doing very well” in the Middle East.
Kushner, who had also just met with other top regional officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, has said the plan will be released soon. It is likely to face stiff opposition from the Palestinians, who cut contact with the US in the wake of Trumps’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
During his tour in the region, Kushner did not meet with any Ramallah officials, who have refused to meet US representatives since the December decision on Jerusalem.
Palestinian officials have also voiced harsh criticism of Trump and his envoys.
The pro-Netanyahu daily Israel Hayom reported at the time of Abdullah’s visit to Washington that senior officials in Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and ?the United Arab Emirates have indicated to the US team that they are prepared to back the Trump administration peace plan even if the Palestinian Authority rejects it. There was no confirmation of that report, which quoted unnamed sources in Cairo and Amman.
@ Bear Klein:
Essentially the Jordan option requires that Jordan be part of the solution , perhaps even the Palestinian state with adjustments,. This approach could bypass the PA as David Singer suggests and as Kushner has suggested, as the negotiating partner..
All that would be required would be for the currrent armistace line be redrawn and become the new boundary between Jordan/Palestine and Israel. The PA would be bypassed and done away with.
If Mudar were the ruler, he would be far more accommodating to Israel and the US than the king has shown himself to be. Also the King is a friend to Qatar, Iran, Turkey and the MB. They are at all odds with the US and Israel. Mudar would realign Jordan. He has already agreed that the Jordan River remain the border.
It may be possible that Jordan would replace the PA as the governing body in some of the A areas. The B areas and the rest of the A areas would become part of Israel. And perhaps emirates could be set up in some of them. Under this arrangement, Israel is the soverneign west of the Jordan though she allows Jordan to manage certain of her territories as the PA is currently doing.
A key part of my Jordan Option would be that under Mudar, Jordan would reaffirm the Jordanian citizenship for all Palestinians both in Jordan and in Judea and Samaria and Gaza. The significance of this is that Israel would have no obligation to offer a path to citizenship for any Arab living under Israel’s sovereign. i.e., Israel doesn’t have to offer citizenship to citizens of another country. This would only happen if Mudar takes over. Kushner has already gone public with the demand that Jordan give citizenship to the Palestinian refugees living there.
Obviously the PA will resist and Israel will have to subdue them.
I have no confidence that the king would cooperate with any of this. So to my mind there is no Jordanian Option with him in power. In fact, without him, no peace de4al will succeed. He is the only game in town.
That being the case, Mudar is key to this solution. Whether he can succeed in taking over remains to be seen.
@ Ted Belman:
Okay I had a thought if you have received confidential information about the Trump plan you would be expected to keep it confidential.
So even leaving aside the issue if Mudar or the King were the party the USA Administration wants to get to bypass the PA how could this work in theory? Just Brainstorming here. Possible Problems and theoretical solutions or results:
1. Israel maintains Security Control West of the Jordan River or Israel will say no to any deal offered.
2. USA offers big economic projects in Judea/Samaria to enhance and entice both citizens and investors.
3. Israel keeps all Jewish Towns in Area C and the Jordan Valley. Some of Area C will be proposed as a Palestinian Area.
4. Some outlying areas of Greater Jerusalem such as Abu Dis are offered to the Palestinians as their regional capital.
5. Palestinians in Judea/Samaria will obtain Jordanian Citizenship.
6. Hamas, Fatah, and Islamic Jihad start trying to create massive riots and
terrorist actions. Abbas has already called for this.
7. The PA stops security cooperation with Israel. The IDF and Shin Bet end up in regular gun battles with the PA Security forces who now join hands with the terrorists in the Fatah.
8. Israel puts closures on all PA cities and cities from where there is trouble Arab workers are no longer allowed into Israel because of the terror risk and problem.
9. Trumps plan falls apart and Israel has to decide whether to apply Israeli Civil Law to Area C and enforce Martial Law on the PA Cities. Will Israel try and find a local Shiek to run things in a particular city in conjunction with the local IDF Commander?
10. Ted help me out what am I missing or have I got wrong?
@ Ted Belman:
Ted, Do you have first hand knowledge that the Jordan option is the Trump peace plan? If you do know what can you share?
@ greenrobot:
What makes you think that the Jordan Option isn’t the peace plan?
What the PA does is irrelevant.
Looking forward to the PA rejection of the peace plan , which will allow the plan to be tossed and replaced with the Jordan is Arab Palestine and Israel is Jewish Palestine concept. The cherry would be all the Gaza’s moving to Turkey to start a new life.
Guess its egg in the face for trumpy, or would he rather a pie? Unfortunately nutunyahoo is to much in love with trump to say no to any sweet talk. The terrorists occupying J-S must be treated as the u s treats illegals, no food stamps, no driving licence, no entry in or out of ISRAEL except out with no return.
ISRAEL should as many other countries do have a list of unacceptable names being registered at birth. No moham, no bibi, no shimon, no anything arab or muzzy. Only the old farts will recall all new citizens had to adopt a JEWISH name.