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Jordan, Arab League Warn Trump against Jerusalem Recognition

A view of Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives. AFP file photo
A view of Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives. AFP file photo
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Jordan, Arab League Warn Trump against Jerusalem Recognition

A view of Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives. AFP file photo
A view of Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives. AFP file photo

Jordan has warned of "grave consequences" if US President Donald Trump decides to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, as the Arab League chief said any such move would boost fanaticism and violence.

Jordan’s Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi told his US counterpart Rex Tillerson by phone Sunday that it was "necessary to preserve the historical and legal status of Jerusalem and refrain from any decision that aims to change that status", official Petra news agency said.

Trump's son-in-law and Middle East peace envoy Jared Kushner said Sunday that the president was close to a decision on whether to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital.
Palestinian leaders are lobbying desperately against such a move.

Safadi warned of "grave consequences of any decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel given the city's special religious, historical and national status -- not just for Jordanians and Palestinians but across the Arab and Muslim worlds".

Jordan's top diplomat said such a move would damage American efforts to revive peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians, warning it could "push the region towards more tension".

Safadi called for emergency meetings of the Arab League and the Organization of the Islamic Conference to "discuss how to deal with any American move to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel".

On Monday, Trump must decide whether to sign a legal waiver that would delay plans to move the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem for another six months.

The status of Jerusalem is a key issue in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. 

Both Israelis and Palestinians claim the city as their capital and previous peace plans have come unstuck over debates on whether, and how, to divide sovereignty or oversee holy sites.

"It is unfortunate that some are insisting on carrying out this step without any regard to the dangers it carries to the stability of the Middle East and the whole world," Ahmed Abul Gheit, head of the Arab League, told reporters in Cairo on Sunday.

Abul Gheit said the Arab League is closely following the issue and is in contact with the Palestinian authorities and Arab states to coordinate the Arab position if Trump takes the step.

"Nothing justifies this act... it will not serve peace or stability, instead it will nourish fanaticism and violence," said Abul Gheit.

The move would "benefit only one side, which is the anti-peace Israeli government," he told reporters.

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Italy Plans to Return Ambassador to Syria to Reflect New Diplomatic Developments, Minister Says

Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani speaks while meeting with members of the G7, on July 11, 2024, during the NATO summit in Washington. (AP)
Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani speaks while meeting with members of the G7, on July 11, 2024, during the NATO summit in Washington. (AP)
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Italy Plans to Return Ambassador to Syria to Reflect New Diplomatic Developments, Minister Says

Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani speaks while meeting with members of the G7, on July 11, 2024, during the NATO summit in Washington. (AP)
Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani speaks while meeting with members of the G7, on July 11, 2024, during the NATO summit in Washington. (AP)

Italy plans to send an ambassador back to Syria after a decade-long absence, the country’s foreign minister said, in a diplomatic move that could spark divisions among European Union allies.

Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, speaking in front of relevant parliamentary committees Thursday, announced Rome’s intention to re-establish diplomatic ties with Syria to prevent Russia from monopolizing diplomatic efforts in the Middle Eastern country.

Moscow is considered a key supporter of Syrian President Bashar Assad, who has remained in power despite widespread Western isolation and civilian casualties since the start of Syria’s civil war in March 2011.

Peaceful protests against the Assad government — part of the so-called “Arab Spring” popular uprisings that spread across some of the Middle East — were met by a brutal crackdown, and the uprising quickly spiraled into a full-blown civil war.

The conflict was further complicated by the intervention of foreign forces on all sides and a rising militancy, first by al-Qaida-linked groups and then the ISIS group until its defeat on the battlefield in 2019.

The war, which has killed nearly half a million people and displaced half the country’s pre-war population of 23 million, is now largely frozen, despite ongoing low-level fighting.

The country is effectively carved up into areas controlled by the Damascus-based government of Assad, various opposition groups and Syrian Kurdish forces.

In the early days of the conflict, many Western and Arab countries cut off relations with Syria, including Italy, which has since managed Syria-related diplomacy through its embassy in Beirut.

However, since Assad has regained control over most of the territory, neighboring Arab countries have gradually restored relations, with the most symbolically significant move coming last year when Syria was re-admitted to the Arab League.

Tajani said Thursday the EU’s policy in Syria should be adapted to the “development of the situation,” adding that Italy has received support from Austria, Croatia, Greece, the Czech Republic, Slovenia, Cyprus and Slovakia.

However, the US and allied countries in Europe have largely continued to hold firm in their stance against Assad’s government, due to concerns over human rights violations.