AMMAN, April 3, 2023 – President Mahmoud Abbas attended on Sunday evening a Ramadan iftar hosted by His Majesty King Abdullah II of Jordan.

According to Petra, the official Jordanian news agency, the meeting was held at Al Husseiniya Palace and was attended by a number of Muslim and Christian Jerusalemite figures.

President Abbas praised King Abdullah’s role, as the Hashemite Custodian of Islamic and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem, in supporting the Palestinian people and their efforts to defend their legitimate right to freedom and independence. He stressed that the Palestinian people will continue their struggle against the occupation in pursuit of their national rights.

For his part, King Abdullah affirmed that it is the duty of every Muslim to confront Israeli escalations targeting Islamic and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem.

According to a Royal Court statement, King Abdullah called on the international community to take a firm stand against the exclusionary and racist statements recently made by some Israeli officials.

The King also reaffirmed Jordan’s commitment to the Hashemite Custodianship and to the Pact of Caliph Omar ibn al-Khattab, which has preserved peace, harmony, and the sanctity of Islamic and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem for over 1,400 years.