Palestinian counterproposal to Trump peace plan

(JTA) — The Palestinian Authority has submitted a proposal for an independent demilitarized Palestinian state in Gaza, the West Bank and eastern Jerusalem.

Prime Minister Mohammed Shtayyeh said Tuesday that the P.A. had submitted a proposal to the so-called Quartet of international mediators — comprising the United States, the European Union, the United Nations and Russia — in response to the Trump administration’s release of its own Middle East peace plan in January.

Shtayyeh said the proposal calls for a “sovereign Palestinian state, independent and demilitarized” with “minor modifications of borders where necessary.” He declined to provide further details.

The announcement comes as Israel moves ahead with plans to annex parts of the West Bank. Under the Trump peace plan, which the Palestinians rejected in its entirety, Israel would be empowered to annex parts of the West Bank.

Shtayyeh said annexation represents an “existential threat” and would signify the “total erosion of our national aspirations.”