Abbas to meet Trump during UN meeting: Official

Ramallah, Sep 13 (IANS) Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas will meet US President Donald Trump next week on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly meeting in New York, an official said on Wednesday.

The Palestinian leadership remains worried about "the unclear position of the American administration, especially with regards to the settlement activity and the two-state solution", Fatah Party Spokesman Nasser Al-Qudwa told reporters at a press conference here.

It remains unclear whether the Abbas-Trump meeting would speed up the ongoing peace process, after US envoys have held a series of meetings with both Israeli and Palestinian officials since Trump took office in January, Xinhua news agency reported.

The current movements in the UN corridors are meant to confront counter-movements by Israel and it's international allies, such as their efforts to change the mandate of the UN Humanitarian Coordinator and become a member of the Security Council, Al-Qudwa, also commissioner of Media and Culture, said.

"I anticipate a serious defeat for Israel in the case of its candidacy for membership at the Security Council," he said.

Israel has been trying to secure a seat at the UN Security Council since 2000, by getting votes of at least one third of the 193-member council.

Palestinian diplomacy has been focusing on lobbying against the candidacy of Israel by bolstering ties with geographical blocs in the UN, particularly the African bloc which has nearly 60 member-state votes.

The next elections for the UN Security Council membership will be held in July 2018, 10 members to be elected next to five permanent members: China, the US, Russia, France and Britain.