What is the capital of Israel?
Dozens killed at Gaza border as US embassy opens in Jerusalem
It’s a simple question - what is the capital of Israel? - but the answer depends on who you ask. For the Israeli government, it’s straightforward: Jerusalem.
Since the annexation of East Jerusalem during the 1967 Six-Day War gave Israel complete control of the Holy City, the Israeli government has been seeking formal international recognition of a united Jerusalem as the country’s capital.
However, Palestinian nationalists consider East Jerusalem the rightful capital of an independent Palestine and a crucial plank of any future peace negotiations.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
To avoid inflaming tensions or compromising future negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian territories over the city's status, the US and other countries have had their embassies in Tel Aviv.
Until now.
Yesterday, the US reversed nearly seven decades of American foreign policy by officially moving its embassy to Jerusalem. Donald Trump announced the move in December, formally recognising the city as Israel’s capital.
The UN General Assembly delivered a forceful response to Trump’s decision at the time, voting 128-9 in favour of a resolution condemning the move.
However, at the embassy’s official opening on Monday, Trump said in a video message: “Israel is a sovereign nation with the right to determine its own capital, but for many years we failed to acknowledge the obvious.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also declared Jerusalem the “eternal, undivided” capital of Israel. “The truth is that Jerusalem has been and always will be the capital of the Jewish people, the capital of the Jewish state,” he said.
Other countries used to have embassies in the city, but many moved after Israel passed a law to make Jerusalem its capital in 1980. Following Trump's lead, Guatemala will now move its embassy to Jerusalem this week, and Paraguay will follow suit later this month.
Yesterday’s opening coincided with the state of Israel's 70th anniversary - and the deadliest day of violence in Gaza since 2014. At least 58 Palestinians were killed and 2,700 wounded by Israeli troops, according to Palestinian officials.
Protests have been taking place for weeks but “deaths soared” yesterday, says the BBC: “Palestinians see this as clear US backing for Israeli rule over the whole city, whose eastern part they claim.”
A “day of victory” for Israel became a “day of rage” in Gaza, said Time magazine.
One protester, a 37-year-old construction worker, told reporters: “Israel and the US must understand that no one can change the status of Jerusalem for us. It will always be our capital and they can never succeed in making it anything else.”
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
'Trump is ruled in contempt'
Today's Newspapers A roundup of the headlines from the US front pages
By The Week Staff Published
-
Hainault sword attack: police hunt for motive
Speed Read Mental health is key line of inquiry, as detectives prepare to interview suspect
By Arion McNicoll, The Week UK Published
-
Shardlake: a 'tightly plotted, gorgeously atmospheric piece of television'
The Week Recommends Arthur Hughes captivates in this 'eminently watchable' Tudor murder mystery
By Irenie Forshaw, The Week UK Published
-
'Can we — the people who have bought so much already — really keep buying more?'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
Columbia begins suspending Gaza war protesters
Speed Read The students are potentially barred from campus buildings and finals and ineligible to graduate in May
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
'Presidential debates are more performance art than actual ways to inform'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
Trump, DeSantis meet for first time since primary
Speed Read The former president and the Florida governor have seemingly mended their rivalry
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Russia gains as Ukraine awaits US aid
Speed Read Ukrainian forces have retreated from several villages as the situation at the front line worsens
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
'Horror stories of women having to carry nonviable fetuses'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
Haiti interim council, prime minister sworn in
Speed Read Prime Minister Ariel Henry resigns amid surging gang violence
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Justices set to punt on Trump immunity case
Speed Read Conservative justices signaled support for Trump's protection from criminal charges
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published