Trump administration announcement is expected within the next few days. Jordanian Foreign Minister speaks of "disastrous consequences". The Palestinian Hamas movement calls the population to rally and threatens a new intifada. The head of the Arab League warns: the "stability" of the Middle East and the world in danger.
Jerusalem (AsiaNews / Agencies) - The Jordanian Foreign Minister has warned the United States about the "disastrous consequences" that will follow the [possible] decision by the US administration to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. In a telephone conversation with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Amman's diplomatic official Ayman Safadi emphasized that such a declaration will eventually ignite the Arab and Muslim world.
The White House and US President Donald Trump are reportedly set to announce, within the next few days, the decision to recognize the holy city as the capital of the State of Israel, also arranging for the transfer of the embassy. Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law and special advisor for the Middle East, points out that "at the moment" no decision has been taken. However, rumors of an announcement by December 6 are circulating.
There has been no official communications from the US Department of State.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has been campaigning for international pressure to try to convince Trump to change his position. In these hours a series of phone calls have been made from his office to world leaders, including French President Emmanuel Macron and Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
The prospect of a recognition of Jerusalem [one of the key elements of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which both claim as their capital] has already alarmed the Hamas movement, which threatens the explosion of a new "intifada". "We are warning - states the extremist Palestinian movement in a statement - against such a decision and we appeal to the Palestinian people to resume the intifada if this unjust decision on Jerusalem is adopted".
For the head of the Arab League Ahmed Abul Gheit a recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel by the Trump administration will eventually encourage fanaticism and violence and will not be functional to the peace process. A similar decision, adds the Arab leader, represents a very serious threat "to the stability of the Middle East and the world".
In recent decades, the idea of ​​considering Jerusalem as an eternal and indivisible capital has grown in Israel - fomented by fundamentalist parties. However, the Palestinians are pressing for the recognition of East Jerusalem as the capital of a future state. Since 1948 the various American administrations have maintained the line of diplomacy between the parties for the recognition of the status of the holy city. During the election campaign, future President Trump broke decades of equilibrium by announcing the possible move of the embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.