By Morton A. Klein, ZOA National President
(OCTOBER 20, 2021 / JERUSALEM POST) Since last spring, the Biden administration has pressured Israel to allow the U.S. to reopen a separate consulate, solely for Palestinian Arabs, in the heart of Israel’s capital, Jerusalem.
In order to uphold Israel’s legal, moral and sovereign rights and security, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett must withstand Biden administration demands to reopen a U.S. Palestinian Arab consulate in Jerusalem and “restrain” Jewish building in Judea, Samaria and Jerusalem.
Since last spring, the Biden administration has pressured Israel to allow the U.S. to reopen a separate consulate, solely for Palestinian Arabs, in the heart of Israel’s capital, Jerusalem.
Recently, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken insisted that the U.S. will move forward with reopening a “Palestinian” consulate – even though the previous day, Justice Minister Gideon Sa’ar announced Israel’s firm opposition to such a consulate.
A U.S. Palestinian Arab consulate would violate the Jerusalem Embassy Act, which recognizes Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and unified city, and would enable the Palestinian Authority to violate the Oslo Accords’ prohibition on the PA carrying on foreign relations.
The consulate would also be a diplomatic insult to Israel. A consulate would undermine Israel’s right to the Jewish people’s eternal holiest city, Jerusalem, and promote dividing Jerusalem and making Jerusalem the capital of an Iranian-proxy Palestinian Arab terrorist state.
Former secretary Mike Pompeo and ambassador David Friedman confirmed that a U.S. consulate for Palestinian Arabs would be illegal, counterproductive and send a terrible message.
