Last night an amendment to keep the U.S. embassy in Jerusalem passed by a count of 97-3. Only three Senators voted against the motion: Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Tom Carper (D-DE).
The amendment was introduced as part of the budget reconciliation resolution by Senators Jim Inhofe (R-OK) and Bill Hagerty (R-TN). The Trump administration moved the embassy to Jerusalem from Tel Aviv in 2018.
“The Trump Administration kept its promise to move the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem, the eternal and indivisible capital of the Jewish State of Israel, and it should remain there,” said Hagerty in a statement. “As former U.S. Ambassador to Japan, I know how important it is to recognize the core concerns of our allies, and it was a travesty that our government ignored U.S. law and declined to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital for so many decades.”
Although Sanders and Warren voted against the amendment, no candidate came out in support of moving the embassy back during the Democratic primary. “[Joe Biden] would not move the American embassy back to Tel Aviv,” said a campaign spokesman for the future president at the time. “But he would re-open our consulate in East Jerusalem to engage the Palestinians. He would also return the United States to the effort of encouraging a two-state solution — the only way to truly guarantee Israel’s long-term security as a Jewish and democratic state and meet the legitimate aspirations of the Palestinians for a state of their own.”
A reminder:
Mandatory UNSC Resolution 2334, Dec. 23/2016
EXCERPTS:
“Guided by the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations, and reaffirming, inter alia, the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by force,
“Reaffirming the obligation of Israel, the occupying Power, to abide scrupulously by its legal obligations and responsibilities under the Fourth Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, of 12 August 1949, and recalling the advisory opinion rendered on 9 July 2004 by the International Court of Justice,
“Condemning all measures aimed at altering the demographic composition, character and status of the Palestinian Territory occupied since 1967, including East Jerusalem, including, inter alia, the construction and expansion of settlements, transfer of Israeli settlers, confiscation of land, demolition of homes and displacement of Palestinian civilians, in violation of international humanitarian law and relevant resolutions,
“Expressing grave concern that continuing Israeli settlement activities are dangerously imperiling the viability of the two-State solution based on the 1967 lines,
1. Reaffirms that the establishment by Israel of settlements in the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967, including East Jerusalem, has no legal validity and constitutes a flagrant violation under international law and a major obstacle to the achievement of the two-State solution and a just, lasting and comprehensive peace;
2. Reiterates its demand that Israel immediately and completely cease all settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem, and that it fully respect all of its legal obligations in this regard;
3. Underlines that it will not recognize any changes to the 4 June 1967 lines, including with regard to Jerusalem, other than those agreed by the parties through negotiations;
4. Stresses that the cessation of all Israeli settlement activities is essential for salvaging the two-State solution, and calls for affirmative steps to be taken immediately to reverse the negative trends on the ground that are imperiling the two-State solution;
5. Calls upon all States, bearing in mind paragraph 1 of this resolution, to distinguish, in their relevant dealings, between the territory of the State of Israel and the territories occupied since 1967;
Hopefully they will inspire more senators to grow their courage. Reality can be dangerous and scary.
https://www.un.org/press/en/2017/sc13111.doc.htm
“The Permanent Observer for the State of Palestine denounced the decision, saying the United States had essentially disqualified itself from its leadership role in the quest for Middle East peace. He underlined Jerusalem’s great significance for the Palestinian people, describing the city’s status as a priority and a “red line” for them. There could be no just and lasting solution to the question of Palestine without a just solution to the question of Jerusalem, he reiterated. Pointing out that no country had ever recognized Israel’s sovereignty over Jerusalem, he said the city’s status remained unresolved and was a final status issue in the Middle East peace process. Actions contravening Council resolutions lacked legal effect and could not change the applicability of international law to the situation, he said. One side could not continue to monopolize the peace process, especially one that acted in biased favour of the occupying Power at the expense of the law and the rights of the occupied people.”
Just as it’s time to put the 2SS to rest for good, it’s also time to stop focusing on ending the Occupation – which, of course, is a key ingredient of the 2SS. 400,000 to 500,000 settlers will NEVER be moved to create this mythical Palestinian state. And, please, don’t try to tell me that many Jews will choose to live in such a state. Nonsense! Finally, Jerusalem can, and should, be the capital of a truly democratic state of Israel.
All of you liberal Zionists need to WAKE UP to reality! FORGET THE 2SS which, in the final analysis is really just a ‘kinder and gentler’ form of apartheid! We should be directing all our energies towards seeking equal rights for Palestinians – along with all other non Jews – in Israel, the West Bank and Gaza. Period!
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-israel-jerusalem-reaction/arabs-europe-u-n-reject-trumps-recognition-of-jerusalem-as-israeli-capital-idUSKBN1E0312
“LONDON (Reuters) – Arabs and Muslims across the Middle East on Wednesday condemned the U.S. recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital as an incendiary move in a volatile region and Palestinians said Washington was abandoning its leading role as a peace mediator.”
https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/12/06/568748383/how-is-the-world-reacting-to-u-s-plan-to-recognize-jerusalem-as-israeli-capital
“Regional neighbors
“We paraded Trump as an ally of the Arabs,” an Egyptian lawyer told Reuters, “but he turned out dirtier than his predecessors.”
In Egypt — one of only two predominantly Arab countries, along with Jordan, to diplomatically recognize Israel — President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi cautioned that the Trump administration decision “would undermine the chances of peace in the Middle East.”
Jordan issued a statement through a government spokesman Wednesday that rejected Trump’s decision outright as “legally invalid.” The spokesman cited a 1980 United Nations Security Council resolution, which declared that any Israeli actions that “have altered or purport to alter the character and status” of Jerusalem constitute “a serious obstruction to achieving a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in the Middle East.”
“Jordan stresses the need for the United States to play its role as a neutral intermediary to resolve the conflict and achieve peace on the basis of the two-state solution, which the world has agreed is the only way to resolve the conflict and achieve lasting peace,” the Jordanian spokesman said.”