Axios: Trump to Meet Arab Leaders in NY

By Staff, Agencies

Axios revealed that US President Trump is preparing to convene a select group of Arab and Muslim leaders on Tuesday during the UN General Assembly in New York to discuss possible steps toward ending the “Israeli” war on Gaza.

The talks are set to take place just days before Trump hosts “Israeli” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House on September 29. The timing coincides with a wave of Western recognition of the State of Palestine and growing threats from "Israel" to usurp more Palestinian land in the occupied West Bank.

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment, as per the report.

Invitations for Tuesday’s meeting, scheduled for 2:30 p.m. ET, have already been sent out, the Arab officials said as quoted by Axios. Leaders from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Egypt, Jordan, and Turkey were invited to attend.

According to the sources, the White House wants these countries to contribute to a post-war plan for Gaza, potentially including troop deployments as part of "a stabilization force to replace ‘Israeli’ forces".

The Arab leaders, in turn, are expected to urge Trump to press Netanyahu to end the war on Gaza and to halt any plans for West Bank annexation. The UAE has warned the administration that annexation could jeopardize the normalization deals with "Israel".

On the same day, Trump is also expected to meet separately with leaders of several Gulf states, including Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain, and Kuwait, the officials said.

A central concern will be "Israel’s" recent strike on Qatar, the first “Israeli” attack on a Gulf state. Arab officials say Gulf leaders will seek assurances from the Trump administration that such incidents will not be repeated.

In a related context, Saudi Arabia has reportedly sent a confidential message to “Israel” warning that any move to annex territory in the occupied West Bank, including the Jordan Valley, would shut the door on normalization with Arab states and could affect the so-called "Abraham Accords", according to a report aired Sunday by Channel 12.

The message, described as highly sensitive, also cautioned that annexation could prompt economic measures, “such as closing airspace,” the Israeli channel said.

“Israeli” public broadcaster Kan 11 quoted a source close to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as saying that “the issue of applying sovereignty in the Jordan Valley will be discussed with US President Donald Trump.”