The Second Meeting Between Them.. Sheikh and Hackabee Meet in Ramallah and Discuss a Series of Issues

Sada News - Sources revealed to "Sada News" that Palestinian Vice President Hussein Sheikh met last Wednesday with U.S. Ambassador Mike Hackabee to discuss the situation in the West Bank.

According to the sources, the meeting took place in Sheikh's office in Ramallah and focused on issues related to the security situation in the West Bank, the financial situation of the Palestinian Authority, and the banking relationship between banks that Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has repeatedly tried to cancel, before extending it again under U.S. pressure.

This is the second meeting between Sheikh and Hackabee, as they previously met on July 22, during which the U.S. ambassador also met with Prime Minister Mohammed Mustapha.

This meeting comes at a time when attacks by the occupation forces and settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank are escalating, and while the U.S. administration continues to make decisions against the Palestinian Authority, the latest of which was banning entry to anyone holding Palestinian documents into the country.

Meanwhile, the Times of Israel reported that a U.S. official stated that the meeting followed U.S. urging for Israel to respond more forcefully to settler violence, but to no avail.

The report noted that Hackabee and Sheikh discussed Israel's ongoing withholding of Palestinian tax revenues, which has severely hampered Ramallah's ability to manage its affairs, as this money constitutes the majority of its budget, according to a Palestinian Authority official.

Earlier this year, Hackabee stated that he was working on persuading Israel to release these funds, but these efforts were hindered by the decisions of Western countries, supported by the Palestinian Authority, to recognize a Palestinian state.

Smotrich has refrained from disbursing the accumulated monthly payments, which have reached several billion dollars, in protest of the Palestinian Authority's policies in Ramallah, including the payment of salaries to Palestinian prisoners and their families.

Sheikh also requested Hackabee's assistance, as an ordained pastor from the Southern Baptist Church, to persuade Israel to grant entry permits for Palestinian Christians to visit Jerusalem during Christmas and to ensure freedom of movement to reach Bethlehem amidst the spread of Israeli checkpoints throughout the West Bank.

A U.S. official stated that both sides agreed to hold a follow-up meeting with their aides next month.

Later, a spokesperson for the U.S. embassy in Jerusalem told the Times of Israel: "Ambassador Hackabee held a very friendly and productive meeting with the Vice President, addressing numerous issues. The ambassador will continue his discussions with officials in Ramallah and believes that ongoing dialogue is vital for all. The ambassador sees substantial gains to be made by continuing to develop relationships there and having candid dialogues about the many challenges facing the region."

The U.S. ambassador to Israel has not historically been responsible for maintaining relations with the Palestinian Authority, which was the responsibility of the American consulate in Jerusalem. However, U.S. President Donald Trump closed this informal task with the Palestinians during his first term, and the Palestinian Authority severed its relations completely with the U.S. and refused to communicate with Trump's first ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, claiming that doing so would legitimize the apparent deterioration in their relations, reducing them to a mere passing issue within Washington's relations with Israel.

However, the Palestinian Authority has recently changed its positions toward the United States during Trump's second term, according to the Israeli site.

Washington largely avoided communicating with the Palestinian Authority in the months following Trump's return to office, addressing the Palestinian issue only from the perspective of Gaza.

But the recent months have seen a shift, as the United States has sought the Palestinian Authority's assistance in advancing its peace plan for Gaza, even if based on Israel's insistence not to engage Ramallah directly, at least initially.

Last month, Washington requested the Palestinian Authority's support to rally Arab nations in support of a UN Security Council resolution that legitimizes Trump's peace plan.

Last week, the Times of Israel revealed that Ramallah's assistance led to the creation of a new high-level communication channel between Sheikh and Jared Kushner, Trump's senior adviser.