Amnesty International has slammed US President Donald Trump’s announcement that Washington is officially recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and will be relocating the embassy from Tel Aviv.
“This is a reckless and provocative decision by the Trump administration that further undermines the human rights of the Palestinian people and is likely to inflame tensions across the region,” Raed Jarrar, Amnesty International USA’s Middle East Advocacy director, said.
By recognizing unified Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and announcing the relocation of the US embassy from Tel Aviv, President Trump has shown yet again his blatant disregard for international law.
Amnesty International: "This is a reckless and provocative decision by the Trump administration that further undermines the human rights of the Palestinian people" https://t.co/qVKzHLQBwx #Trump #Jerusalem
— Raed Jarrar (@raedjarrar) December 6, 2017
The senior Amnesty official noted that “there is international consensus, including UN Security Council resolutions, on the illegality of Israel’s annexation of East Jerusalem”.
“With this move, the United States is violating its own international legal obligations not to recognize or assist an illegal situation and to ensure respect for the Geneva Conventions.”
Jarrar continued: “No country in the world recognizes Israel’s annexation of East Jerusalem, making the decision to confer US recognition deeply troubling.”
This was my commute to school in #Jerusalem, and remains a daily reality there. #JerusalemEmbassy doesn't change the fact of occupation. pic.twitter.com/HlKo27CHvi
— Diala Shamas (@dialash) December 6, 2017
“Not only does this decision contribute to undermining the international rule of law, it also shows a total disregard for mass human rights violations that Palestinians are facing as a result of Israel’s annexation policies.”
The West Bank, including East Jerusalem, “are universally acknowledged to be occupied territory, where international humanitarian law is applicable”, Amnesty stated.
“Israel’s illegal annexation of occupied East Jerusalem was formalized in domestic law in 1980. It has been repeatedly condemned by the international community through various UN Security Council resolutions.”
(MEMO, PC, Social Media)
