Donald Trumpās announcement that his adminstration would recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital will end decades of US policy that such recognition could come only after the status of the city is settled in negotiations.
Last month, US lawmakersĀ Ā to promote recognising Jerusalem and moving the embassy that only heard from members of the Israel lobby, and completely excluded Palestinians.
Israel claims all of Jerusalem as its āunited and eternalā capital. The western part of the city wasĀ Ā of its Palestinian residents by Zionist militias as Israel was established in 1948.
While a number of countriesĀ Ā of what came to be known as West Jerusalem, none has recognised any part of the city as Israelās capital.
The United Nations and world governments consider East Jerusalem, which Israel invaded in 1967, to be part of the occupied Palstinian territory of the West Bank. The UN Security Council has ruled Israelās annexation of East Jerusalem to be ā.ā
On the ground in East Jerusalem, Palestinians face incremental ethnic cleansing by Israel toĀ Ā for Jewish settlers. Israel implementsĀ Ā to make the lives of Palestinians in the city impossible, including building restrictions,Ā Ģż²¹²Ō»åĢż, and theĀ .
Since the occupation began in 1967,Ā Ā to the Israeli human rights group BāTselem, Israel has treated Palestinians indigenous to the city āas unwanted immigrants and worked systematically to drive them out of the area.ā
Trumpās shift has already beenĀ Ā by the 57 member states of the Organization of the Islamic Conference, and US allies,Ā , have warned that the announcement would sabotage the already dim prospects of achieving a two-state solution.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan hasĀ Ā the American move would cross a āred lineā and threatened that his country ācould go as far as cutting diplomatic ties with Israel over the issue.ā
Years of unconditional US support for Israel, coupled with international inaction, have set the stage for Trumpās moves on Jerusalem. Palestinians in Jerusalem have shown a tremendous capacity to resist, such as the weeks of nonviolent civil disobedience last summer thatĀ Ā from measures aimed at tightening its grip on theĀ Ģż³¦“Ē³¾±č“Ē³Ü²Ō»å.
However, Trumpās move will embolden the so-calledĀ .
With significantĀ , this extremist Jewish movement aims toĀ Ā and replace them with a Jewish temple ā potentially triggering religious conflict on an unimaginable scale.
Reposted from TheĀ . Ali Abunimah is a founder of The Electronic Intifada. In the video below, he speaks to about Trump's announcement.