Two weeks after Donald Trump’s decision to move the United States’ embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, expressly recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) on Monday demanded that Trump retracts his decision, in a draft Resolution rejecting U.S decision.
The Resolution was supported by all but one member of the Council, including U.S staunchest allies (France and Britain). The American Ambassador, Nikki R. Haley vetoed the votes against the resolution and chastised fellow Council members.
“The United States will not be told by any country where we can put our embassy, It’s scandalous to say we are putting back peace efforts. The fact that this veto is being done in defense of American sovereignty and in defense of America’s role in the Middle East peace process is not a source of embarrassment for us; it should be an embarrassment to the remainder of the security council”.
The Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, in a tweet, has applauded the decision of Haley.
Thank you, Ambassador Haley. On Hanukkah, you spoke like a Maccabi. You lit a candle of truth. You dispel the darkness. One defeated the many. Truth defeated lies. Thank you, President Trump. Thank you, Nikki Haley. pic.twitter.com/zFIiStoait
— Benjamin Netanyahu (@netanyahu) December 18, 2017
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The one-page resolution which was drafted by Egypt emphasized the position of the Security Council in previous resolutions dating back 50 years ago, rejecting Israel’s claims on Jerusalem.
The resolution also rehearsed the Council’s view of restricting countries from citing an embassy in Jerusalem, with the status of the city an issue to be negotiated between Israel and Palestine, although Palestinians want East Jerusalem as the capital of a future sovereign Palestine.
Palestinian Authority President,Mahmoud Abbas, had canceled his planned meeting with Vice President Mike Pence, in protest of U.S stance in the Resolution. Mr. Pence also postponed his trip until January 2018.
Narrating the present situation in the region, Nickolay E. Mladenov, UN special coordinator for the Middle East peace process, told the Security Council that since December 6, following Trump’s declaration, violence in the region has escalated, with at least 27 rocket attacks from Gaza and clashes between Israeli security forces and Palestinian demonstrators, along with calls for a new Palestinian uprising.
The fuss about Jerusalem
The most sensitive issue in the conflict between Israel and Palestine is the status of Jerusalem, with the holy city at the center of all the peace talks.
In 1947, the UN voted to partition Palestine into Jewish and Arab states; with Jerusalem defined as a separate entity under International supervision. Following the Israel-Arab war in 1948, it was divided into western and eastern sectors, under Israeli and Jordanian control respectively.
In June 1967, Israel captured the eastern side, expanded the city’s boundaries and annexed it, an act that was never recognized internationally.
Israel routinely describes the city, with its Jewish, Muslim and Christian holy places, as its “united and eternal” capital while the Palestinians say East Jerusalem must be the capital of a future independent Palestinian state.
The unequivocal international view, accepted by previous US administrations, is that the city’s status is addressed in peaceful negotiations between the parties involved.
Recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital puts the US out of step with the rest of the world, and legitimizes Israeli settlement-building in the east – considered illegal under international law.
America’s Argument
The United States argue that where it sites its Embassy is an internal American issue, but Article 2.7 of the UN Charter which restricts the UN from interfering in domestic affairs has, in the same Article, an exception which read…”but this principle shall not prejudice the application of enforcement measures under Chapter Vll.”. So what is in Chapter VII?
Chapter VII is concerned with “action with respect to threats to the peace, breaches of the peace, and acts of aggression”. It is clear from article 39 that it is a matter for the Security Council (SC) to determine whether any threat to the peace, breach of the peace, or act of aggression exists and “shall make recommendations, or decide what measures shall be taken in accordance with Articles 41 and 42, to maintain or restore international peace and security.”
The Security Council thus determined that America’s decision to recognize Jerusalem as capital of Israel and move its Embassy there constitutes a threat to peace. A decision which was Vetoed into irrelevance by the American representative.
