PLO office in Washington closed by US

President Donald Trump and his administration are being praised for closing the Palestinian mission, or PLO, in the nation’s capital.

The announcement this week comes after nearly a year of mulling the decision because of stalled peace talks with the Palestinian Authority that frustrated the White House.

“The United States will always stand with our friend and ally, Israel,” National Security advisor John Bolton said during a speech to the Federalist Society. “The Trump administration will not keep the office open when the Palestinians refuse to take steps to start direct and meaningful negotiations with Israel.”

Jan Markell, host of “Understanding the Times” on American Family Radio, says Trump gets it.

“We have a president who may not be the world’s most astute politician,” she observes, “but he does understand that when people come to a negotiating table, either you’re serious or you’re not serious.”

The announcement follows other financial action this year by the Trump administration, including cutting off approximately $200 million in aid, which was announced last month, and cutting funding in January for a UN agency that helps Palestinians.

The string of announcements have been vilified in the media, but various media outlets have reported for decades that top Palestinian officials, going back to Yasser Arafat, have accumulated vast amounts of wealth despite the impoverished population they oversee. The PLO was also responsible for the terrorist attack on the 1972 Munich Olympics which resulted in the deaths of 11 Israeli athletes and a coach and a German Police officer. Yet, today, the PLO or its new namesake the Palestinian Authority which rules the Judea and Samaria in Israel plus Gaza, is supported by the European Union.

A provision in U.S. law states the PLO mission must close its doors if the Palestinians attempt to use the controversial International Criminal Court to prosecute Israelis for crimes against Palestinians.

Bolton also criticized the ICC in the same speech, calling it dangerous to U.S. sovereignty and vowing that the U.S. will never cooperate with its demands.

–Chad Groening, OneNewsNow news service