US warns it won’t fund UN refugee agency if Palestinians reject talks

The US on Tuesday threatened it would cut aid to the UN’s Palestinian refugee agency if Ramallah refused to come to the negotiating table for relaunched peace talks.

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Trump threatens to cut off US aid to Palestinians over Jerusalem dispute

Acknowledging his push to broker peace in the Middle East has stalled, US President Donald Trump on Tuesday threatened to cut off aid to the Palestinian Authority, asking why Washington should make ‘any of these massive future payments’ when the Palestinians were ‘no longer willing to talk peace.’

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Assad Hopeful About Upcoming Russian-Sponsored Talks on Syria

yrian President Bashar al-Assad expressed regret for the stalemate of U.N.-brokered intra-Syrian talks in Geneva last week but says he expects better results during the Russian-sponsored Sochi peace process to be held in February.

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Palestinian leader Abbas in Cairo, Istanbul to rally region over Jerusalem

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Monday intensified efforts to rally Middle Eastern countries against US recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, setting up talks with Arab leaders beginning in Cairo.

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Trump presses ahead with plan to move Israel embassy to Jerusalem despite uproar

President Trump will announce Wednesday that the U.S. government recognizes Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, a risky and diplomatically fraught decision that will put in motion his plans to move the U.S. embassy to the divided ancient city over the heated objections of the Palestinians and other leaders across the Arab world and in Europe.

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On surprise Russia trip, Assad and Putin talk post-war Syria

On a surprise trip to Russia, Syria’s Bashar Assad discussed potential new peace initiatives for post-war Syria with Russian President Vladimir Putin who declared that Russia’s two-year military campaign in Syria is wrapping up, the Kremlin said Tuesday.

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