Top Biden advisor meets Palestinian President Abbas today

(Patria) - U.S. President Joe Biden's national security advisor will meet today in Ramallah with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Reuters reported.

The advisor, Jake Sullivan, will discuss "ongoing efforts to rebuild and revitalize" the Palestinian Authority and curbing "extremist settler violence" against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, said an official who declined to be named.

Sullivan said on Thursday that governance of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip must be linked within a renewed Palestinian Authority. The official said that U.S.-trained Palestinian security forces had acted "incredibly well" in preventing violence in the West Bank after the October 7 attack, and that there was some personnel there that could form "a kind of core" for a future force in the months after the Israeli military campaign.

"This is something we are discussing with the Palestinians, Israelis, and regional partners. And it is still a work in progress," the official said. "It is one idea among many," he added.

Biden remains strongly committed to a two-state solution, but that could not happen as long as Hamas remains the dominant force in Gaza, the official added.

"The Palestinian Authority will seek to ultimately have that role, and that is something we are discussing with them," the official said, adding that Washington is working to ensure it is prepared for "all possible contingencies."

The goal was to lay the groundwork for a lasting and durable peace between Israel and the Palestinians.
Sullivan told Israeli Channel 12 television that he also discussed with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Israel's transition from high-intensity military operations in Gaza to a more precise and targeted phase.

Sullivan declined to provide details or a timeline but called the discussion constructive and said there was a "broad degree of convergence" on strategic goals and necessary steps. Palestinians, meanwhile, have complained about a rise in attacks by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank, with about 275 people killed since October 7.

The White House said Sullivan's talks in the region also focused on restoring a humanitarian pause in the fighting to allow the release of more hostages held in Gaza.