HAMAS SLAMS US SENATE DECISION TO KEEP EMBASSY IN JERUSALEM

Sat 06 February 2021:

Palestinian resistance group Hamas decried Friday a recent decision by the US Senate to keep the American embassy in Jerusalem.

Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem said the move was a “violation of international law” and a clear attack on the rights of Palestinians in the old city of Jerusalem.

“This decision cannot change the reality and history that the Palestinian people have a right over Jerusalem. This decision will not interrupt the struggle of our people to expel the occupying Israel from all Palestinian lands and to establish an independent Palestinian state,” he said.

The US Senate overwhelmingly voted Thursday to keep the embassy in Jerusalem, while few senators voted against establishing funding to maintain the diplomatic mission.

Only three Senators – Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren and Tom Carper – opposed the decision.

Biden’s support

US President Joe Biden has repeatedly said that his administration has no inclination to move the US embassy out of Jerusalem or to revoke the US’s recognition of the contested capital.

During his campaign in April, Biden rebuked Trump’s 2018 decision to transfer the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem as “short-sighted and frivolous”, but said that he would not try to reverse the decision.

Last month, now-Secretary of State Antony Blinken, during his Senate confirmation hearing, reaffirmed the position, saying that the incoming administration had no intention of moving the US embassy. He also said that the Biden administration would continue to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

Thursday’s Senate vote comes days after almost 100 members of the US House, led by Republican Representative Andy Biggs, sent a letter to Blinken celebrating his position on Israel’s claim to the holy city.

Congress originally voted to move the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem in 1995, after consecutive US presidents had signed waivers to push back the transfer for decades because it was seen as a move that would be detrimental to the US’s role as a mediator between the two sides.

Jerusalem is considered a holy city for Muslims, Christians and Jews, as it is the home of some of the most revered ancient and sacred sites for the three faiths.