Palestinian presidency urges Trump to work towards Palestinian state

RAMALLAH, PALESTINE: Palestinian president Mahmud Abbass' office on Wednesday called on US president-elect Donald Trump to work towards the establishment of a Palestinian state, with peace efforts with the Israelis long at a standstill.

"We are ready to deal with the elected president on the basis of a two-state solution and to establish a Palestinian state on the 1967 borders," spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeina told AFP, referring to the year when Israel occupied the West Bank.

Hamas which controls Gaza said Wednesday that it did not expect a change in US "bias" against the Palestinians with Donald Trump in the White House.

"The Palestinian people do not count much on any change in the US presidency because the US policy towards the Palestinian issue is a consistent policy on the basis of bias," Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri told AFP.

"Nevertheless, we hope that US president Trump will re-evaluate this policy and rebalance it on the Palestinian issue."