Palestinians condemn Trump vow on Jerusalem as Israel’s capital

An Israeli border policeman performs a body search on a Palestinian youth near Damascus Gate in Jerusalem's Old City on Sept. 20, 2016. Palestinian leaders on Monday denounced Republican candidate Donald Trump after vowing to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s “undivided” capital if he won the US presidential election. (REUTERS/Ammar Awad)

RAMALLAH, Palestinian Territories: Palestinian leaders Monday accused Donald Trump of abandoning any hope of a two-state solution after the Republican candidate said he would recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s “undivided” capital if he won the US presidential election.
Trump pledged Sunday during a meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu he would recognize Israel’s claim over east Jerusalem, which would break with decades of precedent and put Washington at odds with most UN member states.
“Trump’s statement shows disregard for international law (and) longstanding US foreign policy regarding the status of Jerusalem,” Saeb Erekat, secretary general of the Palestine Liberation Organization, said in a statement.
“Previous statements delivered by his adviser on Israel show a total abandonment of the two-state solution, international law and UN resolutions.”
Israel captured the eastern half of Jerusalem during the 1967 Six-Day war and annexed it in 1980, declaring all of Jerusalem Israel’s unified capital.
The Palestinians see east Jerusalem as the capital of their promised future state.
The Palestinian foreign ministry issued a statement criticizing Trump as well as his Democrat rival in November’s election, Hillary Clinton, accusing her of overly favoring Israel at the expense of the Palestinians.
“The state of Palestine will not serve as a bargaining chip for gaining the Jewish vote in the United States,” the statement said.
After a meeting with Netanyahu in New York, Trump’s campaign released a statement saying the candidate “acknowledged that Jerusalem has been the eternal capital of the Jewish people for over 3,000 years.”
“The United States, under a Trump administration, will finally accept the long-standing congressional mandate to recognize Jerusalem as the undivided capital of the state of Israel,” it added.
The United States — and most other UN member countries — do not recognize Israel’s annexation and consider Jerusalem’s final status to be a key issue to be resolved in peace negotiations aimed at a two-state settlement.
The US Congress passed a law in October 1995 calling for an undivided Jerusalem to be recognized as Israel’s capital and to authorize funding for moving the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
But no US president — Democrat or Republican — has implemented the law, regarding it as an infringement on the executive branch’s authority over foreign policy.