Maen Rashid Areikat (also spelled as ''Erikat'' or ''Erekat''; born October 12, 1960) is a Palestinian diplomat and former chief of the PLO Delegation in Washington DC. He was born in

Jericho Jericho ( ; ar, أريحا ; he, יְרִיחוֹ ) is a Palestinian city in the West Bank. It is located in the Jordan Valley, with the Jordan River to the east and Jerusalem to the west. It is the administrative seat of the Jericho Gove ...

and obtained a B.Sc. in finance from

Arizona State University Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in the ...

in 1983 and MBA from

Western International University Apollo Education Group, Inc. is an American corporation based in the South Phoenix area of Phoenix, Arizona, with an additional corporate office in Chicago, Illinois. The company owns and operates several higher-learning institutions, includin ...

in 1987. In 1993-1998 he worked as spokesman of the

Orient House Orient House ( ar, بيت الشرق ''bayt ʾal-šarq'', he, האוריינט האוס) is a building located in East Jerusalem that served as the headquarters of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) in the 1980s and 1990s. Built in 189 ...

, then unofficial

PLO The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO; ar, منظمة التحرير الفلسطينية, ') is a Palestinian nationalist political and militant organization founded in 1964 with the initial purpose of establishing Arab unity and s ...

headquarters in

East Jerusalem East Jerusalem (, ; , ) is the sector of Jerusalem that was held by Jordan during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, as opposed to the western sector of the city, West Jerusalem, which was held by Israel. Jerusalem was envisaged as a separat ...

. He started working for the

Palestinian National Authority The Palestinian National Authority (PA or PNA; ar, السلطة الوطنية الفلسطينية '), commonly known as the Palestinian Authority and officially the State of Palestine,

in 1998, first at the Negotiations Affairs Department (NAD) while serving as its Director-General until March 2008. In 2008-2009 he served as Coordinator-General of NAD. In May 2009 he was appointed chief of the PLO Delegation to the United States. In 2011, ''

USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgini ...

'' published remarks by Areikat made during a meeting with reporters sponsored by the ''

Christian Science Monitor Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι� ...

'', in which he stated that "After the experience of the last 44 years of military occupation and all the conflict and friction, I think it would be in the best interest of the two people to be separated," a statement which was taken by

Elliot Abrams Elliott Abrams (born January 24, 1948) is an American politician and lawyer, who has served in foreign policy positions for presidents Ronald Reagan, George W. Bush, and Donald Trump. Abrams is considered to be a neoconservative. He is currently ...

to mean the removal of Jews from an independent

State of Palestine Palestine ( ar, فلسطين, Filasṭīn), Legal status of the State of Palestine, officially the State of Palestine ( ar, دولة فلسطين, Dawlat Filasṭīn, label=none), is a state (polity), state located in Western Asia. Officiall ...

. The comment was roundly criticized by pro-Israel outlets, and the pro-Palestine blog ''

Electronic Intifada ''The Electronic Intifada'' (''EI'') is an online Chicago-based publication covering the Israeli–Palestinian conflict. It describes itself as not-for-profit, independent, and providing a Palestinian perspective. History ''EI'' was founded in ...

Ali Abunimah Ali Hasan Abunimah ( ar, علي حسن ابو نعمة, Arabic: ; born December 29, 1971) is a Palestinian-American journalist who has been described as "the leading American proponent of a one-state solution to the Israeli–Palestinian confli ...

also criticized it as "offer ngtacit support for Israeli ethnic cleansing"; the

Center for American Progress The Center for American Progress (CAP) is a public policy research and advocacy organization which presents a liberal viewpoint on economic and social issues. It has its headquarters in Washington, D.C. The president and chief executive officer ...

also found Areikat's previous comments to ''

Tablet Magazine ''Tablet'' is an online magazine focused on Jewish news and culture. The magazine was founded in 2009 and is supported by the Nextbook foundation. Its editor-in-chief is Alana Newhouse. History ''Tablet'' was founded in 2009 with the suppor ...

'' also endorsing

population transfer Population transfer or resettlement is a type of mass migration, often imposed by state policy or international authority and most frequently on the basis of ethnicity or religion but also due to economic development. Banishment or exile is a ...

to be "troubling" and similar to the views of then-Israeli foreign minister

Avigdor Lieberman Avigdor Lieberman (, ; russian: Эве́т Льво́вич Ли́берман, Evet Lvovich Liberman, ; born 5 June 1958) is a Soviet-born Israeli politician serving as Minister of Finance since 2021, having previously served twice as Deputy ...

. USA Today noted that Areikat said that "he was referring to Israelis, not Jews." Areikat also subsequently clarified his remarks in a commentary to ''

The Huffington Post ''HuffPost'' (formerly ''The Huffington Post'' until 2017 and sometimes abbreviated ''HuffPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and ...

'', maintaining his support for a secular government but rejecting "persons who are amid an occupation, who are in my land illegally".

References

External links

Official Curriculum Vitae
at PLOdelegation.us
Chief Representative Maen Rashid Areikat
{{DEFAULTSORT:Areikat, Maen Rashid 1960 births Living people Palestinian diplomats Ambassadors of the State of Palestine to the United States People from Jericho Arizona State University alumni