U.S. consulate refuses to receive note from protesting J’lem MPs

The U.S. consulate in Jerusalem has refused to accept a letter from the Jerusalem MPs sitting in at the Red Cross headquarters at the pretext of having no staff to receive the note.

MPs Ahmed Attoun, Mohammed Toutah, and former Minister Khaled Abu Arafa have been sitting in at the Red Cross headquarters in Jerusalem for 60 days after they were threatened to be deported.

The families of the deputies in addition to a number of national figures sat in at the U.S. Consulate in Jerusalem on Monday to protest the consulate’s decision.

Commenting on the incident, MP Ahmed Attoun said: “The refusal of the U.S. Consulate to receive the letter of our children and wives, under the pretext that there is no consulate staff, proves that the American policy is still biased toward [Israel].”

“How can those who refuse to receive a letter from Palestinian women and children sponsor direct negotiations and be a fair party in them?” Attoun added, posing the question that if an Israeli family was sitting-in would the U.S. refuse to receive a similar message?