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Israel Did Update the U.S. on Palestinian NGO Terrorist Links

(Jerusalem Post) Lahav Harkov - State Department Spokesman Ned Price said the U.S. was not informed in advance of Israel's designation of six Palestinian NGOs as terrorist organizations. The fact is, Israel spoke with officials in the U.S. and Europe about the organizations acting as fronts for the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine terrorist group multiple times in recent months. On Thursday, the day before the ban was made public, Israel Foreign Ministry Deputy Director-General for Strategic Affairs Joshua Zarka spoke with a State Department official, likely Acting Coordinator for Counterterrorism John T. Godfrey. The State Department's Bureau of Counterterrorism has been downgraded under the Biden administration, and the message may not have gotten to the highest levels at first. However, one would expect that after Israel made the terrorist designations public and disputed the State Department's version of events, the latter would have looked into what happened. Instead, Price doubled down on the falsehood that Israel did not update the Americans. Israeli Prime Minister Bennett and President Biden disagree with each other on matters of principle, including construction in the West Bank and opening a consulate for the Palestinians in Jerusalem. This week it seemed that the Biden administration is ramping up the pressure on Israel.
2021-10-28 00:00:00
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