From the Liveblog of
Sunday, May 11, 2025
Reports: PA’s Abbas, Syrian and Lebanese presidents to join Trump’s meeting with Saudi Arabia’s bin Salman
Nurit Yohanan is The Times of Israel's Palestinian and Arab world correspondent
Several Arab newspapers report that Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa, and Lebanese President Joseph Aoun will join US President Trump’s meeting with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman this Tuesday.
According to the report in the UK-based Al-Quds Al-Arabi newspaper, the initiative came from the Saudi crown prince and was accepted by Trump.
Riyadh, Doha and Abu Dhabi are expected to pull out all the stops for Trump, who’s making his first major overseas trip after briefly attending the funeral of Pope Francis in Rome. His visit is due to begin on May 13 in Riyadh.
US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee said yesterday that Trump’s decision to skip Israel in his upcoming visit to the Middle East was not an indication of a deteriorating relationship between Washington and Jerusalem.
Israel has set Trump’s trip as the deadline for a ceasefire deal with Hamas before launching a planned major offensive in Gaza.
Times of Israel staff and agencies contributed to this report.
The Times of Israel Community.