The city of Jersualem is a hotbed of violence in the Middle East owing to claims by Israel as well as Palestine to ownership over the city. Exacerbating that tension are the long-standing claims by Jews, Muslims and even Christians to the city being important for their religions.
Well, to make matters in the region worse, Donald Trump just announced he’s recognizing Jersualem as Israel’s capital city
It was one of his campaign promises and his supporters are really happy about that but the rest of the world is upset about how this move will worsen the already tense political situation in the Middle East.
Promise Kept! ??
President #Trump completes campaign promise and stands with key ally by recognizing Jerusalem as capital of Israel✝️?
MARCH 21, 2016:
“We will move the American Embassy to the eternal capital of of the Jewish people, #Jerusalem…” pic.twitter.com/pNVkP0CS2u
— Cowboy Kal (@RightWingLawman) December 6, 2017
Leaders of the world have warned USA of severe consequences if such a move is taken
They have pointed out how it will affect the peace process if Jerusalem is given off to Israel. Israel, on the other hand, has welcomed the decision by USA.
Moving the US embassy to #Jerusalem was rejected by previous Republican and Democrat administration. Why? Because it was a national security risk. Enter Trump. In order to stop terrorism he will give extremists on all sides exactly what they want.
— Wajahat Ali (@WajahatAli) December 5, 2017
“The changes would be the “kiss of death” to the two-state peace solution and amounted to declaring war in the Middle East”, said Manuel Hassassian, Palestinians’ UK representative, to BBC.
Palestinians are burning pictures of Trump to show their reservations against the decision
Naftali Bennett, Israel’s Education Minister, called on other countries to follow the lead of USA and officially recognise Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is yet to issue an official statement in this regard.
“Jerusalem has been and always will be the eternal capital,” he told the Jerusalem Post Diplomatic Conference.
“Status quo should be respected. Dialogue would only come through recognizing the rights of all people in the region”, said Pope Francis.
There are protests in other parts of the world against this decision by the US President
Thousands of protesters rallying outside of the US diplomatic mission in Istanbul to protest against Donald Trump's Jerusalem announcement.#Turkey#Jerusalem pic.twitter.com/qSVkMtSBig
— Ian56 (@Ian56789) December 7, 2017
Even some Pakistanis are voicing their opinions in the matter
In other news, Jerusalem is to be recognised as the capital of Israel later today. An announcement which might cause unrest in the Middle East and may also cause many deaths over the coming days on both sides. May the creator keep everyone safe. ?? # iprayforpeace
— Armeena Khan (@ArmeenaRK) December 6, 2017
Front page of the Lebanese newspaper The Daily Star.#Jerusalem pic.twitter.com/Vjs66tXIpQ
— Sheharyar Khan (@iSheharyar) December 6, 2017
Planning of declaring #AlQuds as the capital of occupied Palestine (#Israel) shows the desperation & failure of U.S in Palestine. #Islamic Ummah is the ultimate winner & #Palestine will be liberated InSha'Allah. #Jerusalem✌#FreePalestine
❎#JerusalemAsUnitedCapitalOfIsrael ❎ pic.twitter.com/3FOUvT33jL— Hijab Khan?? (@_Hijab_Khan) December 6, 2017
People are even calling out the Government of Pakistan to speak up for Palestine
Have some shame!!!!
If you get some time @KhawajaMAsif plz open your mouth about #Jerusalem situation. We are the only Nuclear Muslim state. @POTUS deserves a strong statement from Pak.— Faizan Yacin (@faizanyacin) December 6, 2017
The Organisation for Islamic Cooperation (OIC) declared on Monday that all of the 57 member states will sever ties with the US or any state that recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital
Rare but welcome to see #OIC united against the US recognition of #Jerusalem as the capital of #Israel which will strongly undermine the two-state solution and further put the #Middle-East in turmoil. https://t.co/3kNYxnGoiT
— Nafisa Shah (@ShahNafisa) December 6, 2017
At the same time, there is critique for the support coming in from Arab countries
Arab leaders saying " #Jerusalem is a red line" while doing everything to ditch Palestinians & strengthen Israeli occupation all these years! Arab leaders only know how to send aid money because money is the only thing they got, not morality not ethics and definitely not dignity!
— Aadil н u s s a і п (@hussain_aadil) December 6, 2017
This is why this move by the US is so important:
The dispute between Israel and Palestine over Jerusalem is a very old one. It is because Jerusalem home to important religious sites sacred to Judaism, Islam and Christianity, especially in East Jerusalem. Israel annexed the sector from Jordan after the 1967 Middle East war and regards the entire city as its indivisible capital. This occupation has never been internationally recognized and is deemed illegal.
There’s no doubt that this move will lead to more unrest in the region and it’s a move that will have consequences for years to come on the world politics.