From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, July 11, 2017
Greenblatt, Friedman meet Palestinian negotiators in Jerusalem
White House peace envoy Jason Greenblatt meets with senior Palestinian negotiators in Jerusalem. He is joined by US Consul General Donald Blome and, in an unusual move, also US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman.
“They had an open, cordial, and frank discussion on many topics related to peace negotiations,” a senior White House official tells The Times of Israel. “The administration believes that in order to give everyone the best chance to reach an ultimate deal, it is critical to have negotiators that are close with the president and that is why the team includes Senior Adviser Jared Kushner, Greenblatt and Friedman.”
According to Israeli reports, the Palestinian negotiating team asked to meet Greenblatt in Jerusalem because they were unwilling to host Friedman in Ramallah.
As an ambassador accredited to the State of Israel, Friedman would usually not attend bilateral meetings with the Palestinian Authority.
— Raphael Ahren
The Times of Israel Community.