Protesters blocked roads in the West Bank as a hunger strike in Israeli prisons entered its 36th day. Government offices closed, public transport halted, and thoroughfares in Palestinian cities sat empty.

The Palestinian prisoners' affairs committee has also called for a "day of rage" when Donald Trump visits Bethlehem on Tuesday for "the voice of the prisoners to be heard by the president."

Read: Trump in Israel: the peace process, the embassy question and a self-inflicted wound

On Monday, fresh from inking an arms deal worth $110 billion (98 billion euros) with Saudi Arabia, Trump landed in Israel for a two-day visit. The US's chief executive, who, along with Tony Schwartz, has an author credit for 1987's seminal "Trump: The Art of the Deal," considers himself a skilled negotiator and is hoping that he might enjoy more success inserting himself into Middle Eastern politics than seven decades of his predecessors have.

Short visit, broad agenda

Ahead of Trump's arrival,Israeli ministers approved measures aimed at improving economic conditions for Palestinians and removing some restrictions on their mobility. For one example, they gave the nod to streamlining transit procedures at Shaar Ephraim, a busy crossing point in the northern part of the occupied West Bank for Palestinians with permits to work in Israel.

The daily newspaper Haaretz reported that authorities sought to allow construction of "thousands of Palestinian homes" in an area where officials had for years denied applications from non-Israeli residents to build on their own land. Haaretz reported that at Sunday night's meeting Education Minister Naftali Bennett and deputy foreign minister Ayelet Shaked, of the religious-nationalist Jewish Home party, "objected vehemently" to the building plans.

Scandal-plagued at home, fatigued on the road, Trump will meet with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and visit sites holy to both Muslims and Jews.

Trump's Middle East visit - awaited with skepticism and hope Nayef al-Hayzan in Saudi Arabia: 'Will have positive impact' US President Trump visits two bastions of relative calm in the war-battered Middle East: Saudi Arabia and Israel. In a café in Riyadh, Nayef al-Hayzan explained why he is confident about the US president's trip: "I expect that Trump's visit will have a positive impact on the Saudi economy, and discussions are expected to tackle the problems in Syria."

Trump's Middle East visit - awaited with skepticism and hope Falafel shop owner Ovad Chen in Israel: 'It doesn't really matter' In Jerusalem, Israel, falafel shop owner Ovad Chen has a more fatalistic view: "I see myself as a very simple person and I believe that at the end of the day, God controls everything. Therefore, it doesn’t really matter what Trump is saying or doing in the Middle East or anywhere else."

Trump's Middle East visit - awaited with skepticism and hope Iraqi fighter Ali Bassem: 'He is a hero' All 50 Muslim states whose leaders Trump will meet in the Saudi capital are menaced by the rise of the so-called Islamic State. Ali Bassem, an Iraqi fighter the on the frontline in Mosul is enthusiastic: "He is a hero. He got [IS] out of Iraq. He is cooperative with the Iraqi people and we and the Americans are one nation. We are brothers."

Trump's Middle East visit - awaited with skepticism and hope Pub owner Somar Hazim in Damascus: 'No clear methodology' In his pub in Damascus, Syria, Somar Hazim explained his views: "His Syria policy is based on interests, in the sense that there's no clear methodology. As for the issue of arming the Kurds, I do not oppose this as long as the goal is fighting a common enemy of the Syrian state, which is [IS], provided that these weapons are not exploited to create a partitioned idea of Syria."

Trump's Middle East visit - awaited with skepticism and hope Sherine Haji in Syria: 'I am worried for my people' Sherine Haji, a female fighter in the Kurdish YPG militia rests in a hospital in Syria. She has a more critical view: "The plan to arm the YPG is a decision taken late. If this support was happening in the first place, the advances would have been quicker. Now I'm wounded, I've lost two legs, I'm worried for my people. This must end, there must be a free and peaceful life in this country."

Trump's Middle East visit - awaited with skepticism and hope Anonymous female fighter in the Gaza strip: 'A man of war' An anonymous female fighter from the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP), in the southern Gaza Strip remarked: "Trump is a man of war, he works on spreading war, chaos and killing among people. Like other presidents who came before him, I do not see he will bring about peace or any good to the Palestinian people. I see that there is another war coming."

Trump's Middle East visit - awaited with skepticism and hope Marla Awad from Syria on the travel ban 'very bad decision' Attitudes are also colored by the actions of Trump's first months in power, among them his attempt to ban citizens of some mostly Muslim countries from traveling to the US. Marla Awad from Damascus was upset: "What matters to me was one very bad decision - his refusal to allow Syrians to immigrate to America is racist. Traveling was a dream of mine to fulfill my ambitions to study and work."

Trump's Middle East visit - awaited with skepticism and hope Student Mubarak Mashali in Egypt: 'Things will get worse' In Egypt, Mubarak Mashali, a student at Cairo University, was very skeptical, "I think Trump is going to ruin things and make them worse than they already are throughout the whole Middle East."

Trump's Middle East visit - awaited with skepticism and hope Sattar Muhsin Ali in Baghdad: 'Trump's policy will hold positive elements' A different attitude was expressed by Sattar Muhsin Ali in his store in Baghdad, Iraq: "I think the core policy of Trump is focusing on eliminating terrorism and drying out its financial sources in the world and curbing the terror-supporting states. Iraq suffered a lot from the policy of former American administrations which led to the spread of chaos and finally to the emergence of [IS]."

Trump's Middle East visit - awaited with skepticism and hope Dates seller Djamel Bouktech in Algeria: 'Will always be friends' In Algiers, Algeria, dates seller Djamel Bouktech is pragmatic: "I think it's just a simple courtesy visit because the Arabs of the Middle East are and will always be friends and strong allies of the USA. This will have a positive effect for the allies and a negative for the others in the Middle East in the long term because of the fragility of the region."

Trump's Middle East visit - awaited with skepticism and hope Refugee Lara Shahin hopes for a 'return to a democratic country' Trump's decision to launch cruise missiles against a Syrian airbase to punish Damascus for a chemical weapons attack was analyzed by Lara Shahin in Amman: "Trump's decision to strike at the airbase was a surprise move that raised my hopes the US president will take bolder decisions in the future that would end President Bashar al-Assad's rule and allow me to return home to a democratic country."

Trump's Middle East visit - awaited with skepticism and hope George Gharib in Lebanon: 'Trump will be like all previous presidents' In his shop in Beirut, Lebanon, George Gharib doesn't expect much: "I do not expect any change in American policies towards the region, especially since President Trump is committed to moving the US Embassy to Jerusalem and there is no intention to pressure Israel. He will be like all previous presidents who came before him with bias and abiding by Israeli interests." Author: Nadine Berghausen



mkg/rt (Reuters, AFP, dpa, AP)