Trump posts letter from Palestinian president ahead of Netanyahu meeting

Former US President Donald Trump expressed his personal thanks to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Tuesday evening after receiving a letter from the Palestinian leader, calling him by his first name.

“Mahmoud — So nice — Thank you — Everything will be good,” Trump wrote on the letter.

Trump posted on Tuesday night an image of a letter from Abbas along with his handwritten response on Truth Social, his social media platform. Abbas wrote the letter following the attempted assassination of Trump earlier this month, prompting words of endearment from the former president. 

The letter is dated July 14 and signed by Abbas, who addressed Trump as "Your Excellency." The Palestinian leader expressed “grave concern” about the attempted assassination, writing, “Acts of violence must not have a place in a world of law and order." He then wished the Republican nominee for president "strength and safety.”

An assailant shot at Trump during a campaign rally in Pennsylvania on July 13. Republican Rep. Ronny Jackson, who previously served as Trump's doctor, said a bullet grazed the former president in the ear, while an attendee was also fatally shot. The gunman was shot and killed by authorities on the scene.

Trump wrote in the same post announcing the letter that he is eager to meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during the latter's visit to the United States. The two men are expected to meet in Florida on Friday.  

“Looking forward to seeing Bibi Netanyahu on Friday, and even more forward to achieving Peace in the Middle East!” wrote Trump.

Contacted by Al-Monitor, Palestinian officials were not immediately available for a comment. 

Why it matters: US-Palestinian relations were strained under Trump. The then-president recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital in 2017 and moved the US Embassy to the city the following year. 

Trump informed Abbas of his decision to move the embassy in 2017, leading to a rebuke from the Palestinian leader. 

"President Abbas warned of the dangerous consequences such a decision would have to the peace process and to the peace, security and stability of the region and of the world," said presidential spokesperson Nabil Abu Rudeineh in a statement at the time.

The Trump administration cut more than $200 million in aid to the Palestinians in 2018, citing the Palestine Liberation Organization's refusal to hold peace talks with Israel. The move included a cut to all US funding of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees, UNRWA.

The Palestinian leadership severed communication with the United States in February 2020 after rejecting Trump’s proposal for a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. 

Trump's meeting with Netanyahu will be the first in four years and since the former president left office. Axios reported in December 2021 that Trump reacted angrily to Netanyahu congratulating Biden on his 2020 election victory, saying, “Bibi could have stayed quiet. He has made a terrible mistake.” Trump disputed that Biden won the 2020 election and sought to overturn the results. 

Know more: In a highly unusual move, Israel's far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir endorsed Trump on Wednesday, telling Bloomberg, “I believe that with Trump, Israel will receive the backing to act against Iran.”