These are the headlines we are tracking for you in this episode of On the News Line:
Palestinians under pressure
Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas comes under renewed pressure to accept any conditions imposed by the US on the Palestinian authority regarding so-called peace talks with the Israeli regime. US president Donald Trump is to unveil his peace plan for the Middle East. An Egyptian newspaper has quoted an Egyptian diplomat as warning that Palestinians may in the future regret not having accepted what they now see as too little. The dynamics of regional diplomacy regarding the Palestinian issue seems somehow mysterious as it’s unclear which governments or leaders are behind pressuring Abbas. Some observers say they may include Saudi Arabia. One media report recently revealed that Saudi officials months ago demanded Abbas during a visit to Riyadh accept trump’s Jerusalem al-Quds move, which made the Palestinian president angry.
A hypocritical warning
It’s been criticized as hypocritical comments by US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson just before his ouster: The US top diplomat has warned African countries against Chinese investment. Tillerson has called on African nations to be vigilant against Beijing’s massive investments in their countries. Tillerson claims African governments could lose control of infrastructure and resources if China projects go wrong. “Oftentimes, the financing models are structured in a way that the country, when it gets into trouble financially, loses control of its own infrastructure or its own resources through default.” Tillerson made the remarks while touring several African nations including Ethiopia, Djibouti and Kenya. The US official claims he’s not trying to prevent Chinese investment in Africa, but the tone of his warning conveys a different message.