US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday announced plans to reopen a key diplomatic outreach office to the Palestinians and pledged nearly $40 million in new aid – reversing key policies of the Trump administration as he moved to bolster the embattled Palestinian government in the West Bank.

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On his first official visit to the region, Blinken met with Israeli and Palestinian leaders with the immediate aim of shoring up last week's ceasefire that ended 11 days of fighting between Israel and Hamas terrorists in the Gaza Strip. He vowed to "rally international support" for the effort while also promising to ensure that none of the aid would reach Hamas.

Blinken repeatedly alluded to the underlying issues of the decades-old conflict and expressed empathy for both sides, but he showed little interest in launching another US push for lasting peace. Instead, he expressed hope for creating a "better environment" that might one day yield peace talks.

Despite these modest aims, Blinken made clear that US President Joe Biden would pursue a more even-handed approach to the region than former US President Donald Trump, who sided overwhelmingly with Israel in virtually every area of disagreement with the Palestinians.

"As I told the president, I'm here to underscore the commitment of the United States to rebuilding the relationship with the Palestinian Authority and the Palestinian people, a relationship built on mutual respect and also a shared conviction that Palestinians and Israelis alike deserve equal measures of security, freedom opportunity, and dignity," he said after a meeting with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in the West Bank.

In an act with great symbolic meaning, Blinken said the US would reopen its Jerusalem consulate – an office that for years served as the de facto embassy to the Palestinians.

Trump had downgraded its operations and placed them under his ambassador to Israel when he moved the US Embassy from Tel Aviv to the holy city in 2018. The embassy move infuriated Palestinians, who claim east Jerusalem as their capital and led them to sever most ties with the Trump administration.

Blinken did not provide a firm date for the reopening but said that Michael Ratney, a senior US diplomat who has previously served as consul general in Jerusalem, would soon be returning to the region.

Blinken also announced some $38.5 million in additional aid for the Palestinians. In all, the Biden administration has pledged some $360 million to the Palestinians, after the Trump administration cut almost all aid. Tuesday's pledges included $5.5 million in emergency assistance for Gaza.

Blinken promised that any assistance will be kept out of the hands of Hamas, which opposes Israel's right to exist and which Israel and the US consider a terrorist group.

The US is trying to bolster Abbas, who has been sidelined by recent events, in his rivalry with Hamas and on the international stage.

Abbas heads the internationally backed Palestinian Authority, whose forces were driven from Gaza when Hamas seized power there in 2007 after defeating Fatah in elections there. He now administers only parts of the occupied West Bank. Though deeply unpopular at home, he is seen internationally as the representative of the Palestinian people and a key partner in the long-defunct peace process.

The ceasefire that ended the Gaza war on Friday has so far held, but it did not address any of the deeper issues plaguing the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, something Blinken acknowledged after meeting Tuesday with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

"We know that to prevent a return to violence, we have to use the space created to address a larger set of underlying issues and challenges, and that begins with tackling the grave humanitarian situation in Gaza and starting to rebuild," he said.

On Tuesday, the leader of the powerful Lebanese terrorist group Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, said Israeli actions at Al-Aqsa could provoke fighting across the Middle East. "Jerusalem means a regional war," said Nasrallah, whose group fought Israel in a monthlong war in 2006.

Meanwhile, Netanyahu is fighting for his political life after a fourth inconclusive election in two years. He faces mounting criticism from Israelis who say he ended the offensive prematurely, without halting rocket attacks or dealing a heavier blow to Hamas.

In his remarks after his meeting with Blinken, Netanyahu hardly mentioned the Palestinians, warning of a "very powerful" response if Hamas breaks the ceasefire.

Netanyahu spoke of "building economic growth" in the West Bank but said there will be no peace until the Palestinians recognize Israel as a "Jewish state." The Palestinians have long objected to that demand, saying it undermines the rights of Israel's own Palestinian minority.

Blinken repeatedly affirmed what he said was Israel's right to defend itself and said the US would assist Israel in replenishing its Iron Dome rocket-interception system.

Yet he also called on leaders of all sides to chart a "better course" in hopes of laying the groundwork for peace talks aimed at establishing an independent Palestinian state alongside Israel. The Biden administration, like most of the international community, believes the "two-state solution" is the only way to resolve the conflict.

He said that could start with a successful reconstruction effort in Gaza, which "has the potential to undermine" Hamas. He also urged all sides to refrain from moves that could escalate tensions or reignite violence. He cited the planned evictions in Sheikh Jarrah, Israeli settlement construction, and Palestinian incitement.

Blinken heads to neighboring Egypt and Jordan, which have acted as mediators in the conflict, Wednesday. Egypt succeeded in brokering the Gaza truce after the Biden administration pressed Israel to wind down its offensive.

Biden, meanwhile, is expected to name former senior US State Department official Tom Nides to serve as ambassador to Israel, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Nides is currently the managing director and vice-chairman of the multinational investment bank Morgan Stanley. He previously served as deputy secretary of state for management and resources under Hillary Clinton from 2011 to 2013. The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the yet-to-be-announced pick, said Nides has already been formally offered the position.

The president is expected to soon announce the pick, though exact timing remains unclear, according to a second person familiar with the deliberations. The official, who was not authorized to comment publicly, added that Biden had made his choice for the Israel ambassadorship and vetting was underway.

The White House declined to comment on Nides' forthcoming nomination.

Robert Wexler, a former Democratic congressman from Florida, was also receiving serious consideration for the high-profile post, officials said.

Getting an ambassador in place in Israel has become a high priority for the administration following this month's 11-day war between Israel and Hamas, the most significant clashes between Israel and the terrorist group since 2014.

Israelis complained in the weeks following Biden's inauguration in January that he was slow to name his envoy and to reach out to Netanyahu. Some Israeli officials worried that the relative early silence forecast a chillier relationship between the two close allies after Trump's warm embrace.

Biden, who spoke to Netanyahu for the first time about four weeks after his swearing-in, had put off his first call with Netanyahu, in part, because he first wanted to speak with key European allies as he weighed his steps on reviving the Iran nuclear deal hatched during former US President Barack Obama's administration and shelved by the Trump White House.

The official said that even before this month's fighting, the Biden administration's diplomatic efforts with Israel had been complicated by Israel's own chaotic politics in the lead-up to the fourth round of elections there in March.

Nides launched his Washington career in 2006 working for Rep. Tony Coelho, the Democratic majority whip. He also worked for Democratic House Speaker Tom Foley early in his career. Under US President Bill Clinton's administration, he served as chief of staff to US Trade Representative Mickey Kantor. Obama nominated him in 2010 to serve as deputy secretary of state for management and resources.

In addition to his work at Morgan Stanley, Nides has also done stints as a top executive at Fannie Mae, Credit Suisse First Boston, Zurich-based Credit Suisse Group, and the global public relations firm Burson-Marsteller.

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The shadowy leader of the armed wing of the Hamas terrorist group has issued his first public statement in nearly seven years, warning Israel it will pay a "heavy price" if it evicts Palestinians from their homes in east Jerusalem.

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Mohammed Deif has been in hiding for more than two decades and is believed to be paralyzed after surviving multiple assassination attempts. The most recent was during 2014's Operation Protective Edge, when an Israeli airstrike killed his wife and infant son, according to Hamas.

His last public statement was an audio recording in which he said Hamas chose to attack soldiers rather than civilians. The recording was accompanied by footage of Hamas fighters attacking a small Israeli military base near the Gaza Strip. Despite his claims, Hamas fired hundreds of rockets at civilian areas during the war.

The only known image of Deif is a 30-year-old ID photo released by Israel, and even in Gaza, only a handful of people would recognize him.

Late Tuesday, Hamas circulated what it described as a pre-recorded audio statement from Deif over the encrypted messaging service Telegram.

In it, Deif says he was sending a "clear, final warning" that if Israel goes through with the threatened eviction of dozens of Palestinians in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in east Jerusalem, then Hamas "will not stand by helplessly and the enemy will pay a heavy price."

Several Palestinian families in Sheikh Jarrah have been embroiled in a long-running legal battle with Israeli groups trying to acquire property in the neighborhood near Jerusalem's famed Old City. Protesters have scuffled with police there in recent days.

Recently, Palestinian protesters have clashed with Israeli police over restrictions on gatherings during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. Hamas egged on the clashes and Gaza terrorists fired rockets at Israel in support of the protesters.

Hamas appears to be seizing on the threatened Sheikh Jarrah evictions to bolster its image as an armed resistance movement in contrast to President Mahmoud Abbas's Palestinian Authority, which engages in security coordination with Israel.

Last month, Abbas indefinitely delayed the first Palestinian elections in 15 years, citing Israeli restrictions in east Jerusalem. Critics saw that as a pretext for calling off a vote in which Abbas' Fatah party appeared likely to lose power and influence to Hamas, which denounced the postponement as a "coup."

Despite the harsh rhetoric, in Gaza, where Hamas seized power from Abbas' forces in 2007, the terrorist group has largely observed an informal cease-fire with Israel in recent years in exchange for the easing of an Israeli-Egyptian blockade on the territory.

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Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas insinuated elections in the Palestinian territories would not go ahead as planned in a televised speech, Thursday.

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In his remarks, Abbas claimed Jerusalem had relayed the message Palestinian elections could not be held in the east of the city because a new Israeli coalition government had yet to be formed.

While Abbas did not explicitly say elections would be canceled, the assessment is an official announcement to that end will be made in the coming hours.

"European Union representatives confirmed to us that that Israeli side is not allowing elections to be held in east Jerusalem. The Europeans said there is no use, and the Israelis will never allow elections. Our true response to Israel's refusal is that no one will laugh at us. This is idle chatter that will not work with us," he said.

"We sent the Palestinian foreign minister to Europe, and we said we are waiting for an answer from the Israelis on the holding of elections in east Jerusalem. We issued presidential decrees, and we waited for a response to holding them [the elections] in Jerusalem, and we got no answer."

The PA president further accused Israel of attacking political activists in east Jerusalem and preventing them from campaigning there.

As for the recent riots in the capital, Abbas said, "These events that the entire world saw showed that our great people can take on the occupation forces and its intentions of occupation. The world saw the violence of the Israeli government and the settlers, those who called 'Death to Arabs.' I say 'no' to those who claim a unified Jerusalem is the Israeli capital."

A Palestinian journalist with ties to Hamas blasted Abbas' speech, which he called "misleading."

The speech was "a pathetic attempt to escape elections because they don't guarantee him victory."

Earlier Thursday, Fatah sources told the London-based The New Arab media outlet the elections would likely be postponed indefinitely and the parties would instead be invited to establish a national unity government.

During the day, Palestinian media outlets reported Abbas had met with former Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad to discuss the establishment to that end.

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In a meeting with Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani in Doha, Monday, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas pressed the Qatari emir not to sign a normalization deal with Israel absent any progress on the Palestinian issue, according to a report in Saudi Arabia's Elaph news site.

Abbas told the Qatari emir that US President-elect Joe Biden's incoming administration was set to declare renewed support for a two-state solution, senior Qatari officials told the Saudi site. Abbas further argued signing a normalization deal with Israel that had the support of outgoing US President Donald Trump would harm the incoming administration's planned efforts to pressure Israel to agree to negotiations for a peace deal on the basis of the two-state solution.

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Abbas also ordered senior Fatah party official Jibril Rajoub, who had spent the last few days in Iraq, to travel to Oman to pressure the Qatari heir to the throne not to sign the normalization deal with Israel as long as the Palestinian issue was at a dead end, according to the report.

Senior officials in Oman told Elaph that Rajoub's last-minute trip to the emirate to meet with close associates of Sultan Haitham bin Tariq took senior Omani officials by surprise. According to the report, Rajoub, at Abbas' orders, asked his hosts not to sign a normalization deal with Israel, arguing that such agreements harm the Palestinians' national interests.

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King Abdullah II met on Wednesday with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and restated his position that the creation of a Palestinian state with east Jerusalem as its capital is the only way to end the conflict.

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Kushner will be returning to the Middle East this week to promote the Trump administration's economic peace plan for the Palestinians. He outlined the plan's ambitious investment and development goals at a conference in Bahrain last month.

The US under President Donald Trump has refused to endorse a two-state solution as part of Trump's undisclosed "deal of the century" and has slashed aid and support for the Palestinians.

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At a workshop in Bahrain last week, Kushner unveiled a $50 billion economic plan for the Palestinian territories, Jordan, Egypt and Lebanon.

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Sometime later this year, he is to outline a 50- to 60-page page plan that will offer proposals on resolving the thorny political issues between the Israelis and the Palestinians.

Palestinians have harshly criticized the economic plan.

In a conference call with reporters, Kushner said US President Donald Trump was "very fond" of Abbas and willing to engage with him at the right time.

"Our door is always open to the Palestinian leadership," Kushner said.

He said he believes Abbas wants peace but "certain people around him are very uncomfortable with the way we've approached this, and their natural reaction is to attack and say crazy things" that are not constructive.

Asked by a Lebanese reporter whether the United States hoped Arab countries hosting Palestinian refugees would accept them permanently in exchange for funding, Kushner declined to answer directly, saying the matter would be addressed later.

But he suggested a comparison between Jews displaced from Middle Eastern countries in 1948, many of whom Israel took in.

"Look, you have a situation when this whole thing started where you had 800,000 Jewish refugees that came out of all the different Middle Eastern countries and you had 800,000, roughly, Palestinian refugees," he said

"And what's happened to the Israeli – to the Jewish – refugees, is they have been absorbed by different places whereas the Arab world has not absorbed a lot of these refugees over time," he said.

"I think that the people of Lebanon would love to see a resolution to this issue, one that is fair," he said.

"And I also think that the refugees, the Palestinian refugees who are in Lebanon, who are denied a lot of rights and who, you know, don't have the best conditions right now would also like to see a situation where there is a pathway for them to have more rights and to live a better life."

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