The man holding the Israel-Palestine file At the State Department, Hady Amr is not working on a comprehensive peace plan, but on gradual measures to improve the situation there, several Israeli, Palestinian and American sources have told me.
Why it matters: American presidents have held office for decades in the hope of reaching a historic peace deal. President Biden does not see this as achievable in the current circumstances.
- With Israel-Palestine well below the White House list of priorities, the issue will be handled primarily by the State Department, where Amr serves as deputy assistant secretary for Israeli-Palestinian affairs (unlike Barack Obama, Biden refused to appoint a special envoy for Peace in the Middle East).
- Secretary of State Tony Blinken made it clear that he does not expect a Nobel Peace Prize. Instead, Amr was tasked with building trust from the bottom up.
- Based on my conversations with a dozen current Israeli, Palestinian and American officials and former employees, Amr seems to be the embodiment of this more pragmatic approach.
Amr was the “bottom-up” guy during his four years to deal with the Israeli-Palestinian issue during the Obama administration.
- He worked closely with the Israelis to develop projects such as 3G networks for Gaza or sewage systems in the West Bank.
- During the 2014 Gaza War, Amr worked around the clock to redistribute all US assistance to Palestinians in humanitarian aid to Gaza.
- It was up to Amr to implement policies agreed at the highest level – usually between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and then Secretary of State John Kerry – in a very difficult political environment.
The background story: Amr was born in Beirut in 1967 and grew up mainly in New Jersey and Virginia.
- An economist and foreign policy expert, he joined the Department of Defense during the Clinton administration, spent time in the private sector, and then joined the Brookings Institution in 2006, founding his Doha Center.
- Amr returned to the government during the Obama administration, first at the Department of Homeland Security and then as deputy assistant administrator for the Middle East at the United States Agency for International Development.
- In 2013, he was brought in by the then Middle East peace envoy Martin Indyk – also a former Amr chief at Brookings – to work on economic issues related to the Palestinians. Amr remained until the end of Obama’s second term.
- He was a foreign policy advisor to the Biden campaign and involved in its dissemination to the Arab-American community.
What they are saying: General Yoav (Poli) Mordechai, a former Israeli government coordinator in the West Bank and Gaza, says he discovered that Amr was an experienced professional who was not involved in political discussions, but wanted to make things happen.
- Israeli deputy national security adviser Reuven Azar, who was a close contact with Amr while serving at the Israeli embassy in Washington, considered him pragmatic, humane and focused on improving Palestinian living conditions, said a source familiar with his thinking.
- An Israeli officer who has spoken to Amr since his appointment describes him as intelligent, with a very sober view of what is possible at the moment.
The other side: Palestinian officials have told me that they have been impressed with Amr based on his commitments so far.
- “We would always joke that the new American envoy would never know the difference between Sheikh Jarrah and Kafr ‘Aqab [two neighborhoods in East Jerusalem]”said a Palestinian official.
- “He knows. We haven’t talked to Americans in years, and finally, someone is listening.”
The situation: Amr is developing plans to re-engage with the Palestinian Authority, reverse some of Trump’s policies and resume financial aid to the Palestinians, probably starting with $ 75 million already allocated by Congress for aid and development projects.
- These issues are at the top of their to-do list until Israel’s election on March 23.
- Amr will face two short-term political challenges: redefining US policy on West Bank settlements without provoking a fight with the Israeli government and drafting a policy for the Palestinian parliamentary elections planned for May 22.
- He has already received calls with officials on both sides, including the Israeli ambassador to Washington, the Israeli deputy national security adviser, the Palestinian prime minister and the Palestinian intelligence director.
What is the next: Amr’s debut on the world stage will be at the international donor meeting for the Palestinian Authority on February 23 to discuss measures to improve the Palestinian economy. Israelis, Palestinians and members of the international community will be watching closely.
Worthless: Due to unusual circumstances, Amr is using at least two other functions in addition to his assistant assistant secretary.
- Without a special envoy for the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, Amr will represent the United States in formats such as the Quartet, which includes diplomats from Russia, the UN and the EU. This group met at Zoom on Monday.
- Amr is also the U.S. head of mission for the Palestinians because the U.S. Consulate in Jerusalem was merged by the Trump administration at the Israeli embassy in 2019.
- The Palestinians interrupted almost all communications with American diplomats at the embassy at that time, so Amr will be the main point of contact for Palestinians who wish to communicate with the government.
Current and former US officials praise Amr’s knowledge of the heart of the matter and ability to take difficult issues forward, and they say he was a mentor to the young foreign service officers who worked with him in the Israeli-Palestinian archive.
- Indyk, Amr’s former boss, told me that he is “the right person for these times because he knows the mechanics, concerns and sensitivities of both sides, and his job is to improve the situation and this is based on the experience that he has”.
The end result: Amr has a much lower profile than others who maintained this portfolio, most recently Jared Kushner. But that fits the Biden government’s more modest goals.