Israel’s Kan news channel reports that the Jordanian monarch’s trip is aimed at preventing a possible flare-up during the Muslim holy month.
Jordan’s King Abdullah plans to meet with Palestinian Authority (PA) head Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah next week in a bid to ease tensions in the occupied West Bank, ahead of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, Israel’s Kan news channel reported on Monday.
Kan reported that King Abdullah will be making his first trip to the occupied territories since 2017, before the anniversary of last year’s tensions in Jerusalem that later triggered Israel’s 11-day offensive on Gaza.
Tensions erupted last year when Israel tried to expel Palestinian families from the East Jerusalem neighbourhood of Sheikh Jarrah to make way for Israeli settlers.
This prompted widespread protests across the occupied West Bank and the Palestinian community inside Israel, triggering Israel’s large-scale military operation on the besieged Gaza Strip.
According to Axios, US officials have been working to maintain calm in Jerusalem ahead of the anniversary of the May 2021 conflict where around 250 Palestinians were killed in Gaza and 13 people were killed in Israel.
