The Palestinian Central Council voted on Monday to call for the suspension of recognition of Israel as a response to U.S. President Donald Trump's Dec. 6 recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital.
The vote was carried by a majority of 72 members, with two opposing the decision and 12 abstaining. The council is the second-highest policy-making body in the Palestine Liberation Organization.
On Sunday, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas railed against Trump in a fiery speech, castigating him for his treatment of the Palestinians and saying the Palestinian leadership will have no problem rejecting an unacceptable peace plan.
Trump "stabbed the Palestinians in the back," Abbas said. "If he thinks we'll give up, he is wrong. Jerusalem is the Palestinian capital and we will not accept any alternatives. … We are at a critical crossroads. The future of the Palestinian issue is at stake."
Using unprecedentedly harsh language, Abbas said, "Trump, 'ikhrab beitak'" – an Arabic curse meaning "may your house be destroyed."
Israeli officials said Abbas had "shown his true colors" in the speech. They said the Palestinian leader is worried about an American peace initiative that would be supported by other Arab nations and thus would force the Palestinians' hand.
'Oslo is finished'
In Monday's vote, Palestinian Central Council head Salim Zanoun said, "We assign the [PLO's] Executive Committee to suspend the recognition of Israel until it recognizes the state of Palestine along the 1967 borders, revokes the decision to annex east Jerusalem, and stops settlement activity.
"The Central Council also renews its decision to suspend all forms of security coordination [with Israel]."
The council later issued a statement saying that the obligations the Palestinians have undertaken as part of the 1993 Oslo Accords "no longer exist."
While withdrawing the PLO's recognition of Israel could spark an international backlash, it was unclear whether the vote was binding.
According to French news agency AFP, a 2015 vote by the Palestinian Central Council to suspend security coordination with Israel was never implemented.
Abbas said Monday that Israel is to blame for the accords' collapse and that Israel's actions are eroding the possibility of a two-state solution.
"I am saying that Oslo is finished. There is no Oslo. Israel ended Oslo," Abbas said.
Hamas, which does not recognize Israel's right to exist, welcomed Monday's vote, saying the "real test" would be "to implement it effectively on the ground and put in place the necessary mechanisms" to counter Israel's activities.
Abbas said the Palestinian Authority will no longer accept the U.S. as a mediator in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, and called for internationally mediated negotiations.
In response, the European Union urged cooler heads to prevail, saying its position on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict remains "based on the Oslo Accords."
Ramallah's relations with Washington have deteriorated rapidly since Trump took office. Abbas has repeatedly accused the Trump administration of being grossly pro-Israel, saying the U.S.'s new policies in the region have undermined Palestinian interests.
The Palestinians were already furious over Trump's refusal to commit to the idea of an independent Palestinian state, and the Jerusalem declaration threw a bigger wrench into Trump's peacemaking attempts.
Since then, the Palestinians have butted heads with the U.S. at the United Nations, winning a global rebuke against Trump's Jerusalem decision. Trump has responded by threatening to reduce U.S. payments to the U.N.'s Palestinian refugee agency, to which the U.S. is the largest donor.
Souring relations further, Abbas has refused to meet with U.S. Vice President Mike Pence, who is scheduled to visit Israel, Egypt and Jordan next week.
On Sunday night, Abbas lashed out at U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman and U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley, calling both of them a "disgrace."
"He [Friedman] is an offensive human being, and I will not agree to meet with him anywhere. They requested that I meet him and I refused," Abbas said. "Nikki Haley too. She threatens to hit people who hurt Israel with the heel of her shoe, and the response to her speech will be harsher."
