Palestinian business leaders to boycott US-led conference in Bahrain

Leading Palestinian businessmen announced on Tuesday they would boycott an economics-focused conference next month in Bahrain that is part of the US’s Middle East peace plan, AFP reports.

The Palestinian political leadership had already announced it would not attend the June 25-26 conference. The US had also invited key Palestinian businesspeople, saying the meeting was focusing on economic issues only.

The bodies representing the vast majority of Palestinian businesses said in the Palestinian city of Ramallah on Tuesday, that they had jointly agreed to skip the conference.

“What is needed is a political solution because building an economy without sovereignty and control over land, water, sea and natural resources cannot succeed,” said Arafat Asfour, chairman of the Palestine Trade Center.