Jewish Voice for Labour condemns Donald Trump’s decision

Temple Mount, East Jerusalem. Source: wikipedia

Jewish Voice for Labour condemns in the strongest possible terms Donald Trump’s decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. As Jeremy Corbyn has said, this move is ‘a reckless threat to peace’. It is also wounding and offensive to all Palestinians. It will hinder all who are working for a just resolution of the conflict under international law, in which Palestinian rights are fully respected.

Israel’s claim to a unified Jerusalem is manifestly illegal. Donald Trump, by supporting this claim, and failing to make any distinction between East and West Jerusalem, has recklessly endangered both Palestinian and Israeli lives. His action puts all peace moves back several steps, and risks escalating the conflict in such a way as to consume the whole region.

Trump’s move also seems a deliberate provocation to the Palestinian community. We suspect that it is designed, at least in part, to enrage Palestinians, diverting them from non-violent action based around Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions, and moving them towards violent confrontation. This will provide an excuse for the massively armed and equipped Israeli Army and Police to move against Palestinians with ruthless vigour, characterising all resistance as terrorism. We support the right of Palestinians to contest this move.

JVL condemns those leaders of the British Jewish community who have welcomed Trump’s announcement and shown no concern for either the rights or security of the inhabitants of the region. We urge all Jews, whether Labour Party members or not, to join the international chorus of protest against it.

JVL will be supporting the demonstration outside the US Embassy in London at 5.30 on Friday 8 December and calls on all its members and supporters to support demonstrations and events designed to persuade the United States to abandon this terrifying initiative.

Comments (3)

  • Pieter Plunkett says:

    Saying that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel is no more than a statement of fact. It is the seat of Government and contains the headquarters of all the main administrative functions.

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    • Mike Cushman says:

      No, it is more than that. In the immediate, Trump did not distinguish between West and East Jerusalem and thus was complicit in Israel’s illegal occupation of East Jerusalem.

      Going back we have to understand why no Governments recognised West Jerusalem as Israel’s capital between 1948 and 1967. The UN resolutions that Israel constantly quotes to underpin its claim to legitimacy as a state explicit;y did not make West Jerusalem as part of Israel and placed it under international control. While the UN never enforced the international control neither did it abandon it and grant legitimate ownership to Israel. Thus all countries, whether friends or antagonists of Israel, refused to move their embassies there despite repeated entreaties from Israeli politicians.

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  • Pieter Plunkett says:

    You are of course right that Jerusalem was not originally part of Israel. However, the 1949 Armistice Agreement includes West Jerusalem within Israel, and the borders defined in that Agreement have been accepted for nearly 70 years.
    East Jerusalem was annexed by Jordan in 1950 and captured by Israel from them in the 1967 war.

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