Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday many countries would follow the United States in recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's capital despite a call by Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh for a new Palestinian Intifada, or uprising.
Wednesday's announcement by US President Donald Trump reversed decades of peace-making policy on Jerusalem, which both Israelis and Palestinians claim, and drew censure from many countries, among them key allies of Washington.
"I would like to announce that we are already in contact with other countries which will issue a similar recognition," Netanyahu said in a speech at Israel's Foreign Ministry.
He did not name any of these countries.
The United States plans to open an embassy in Jerusalem, a move it says could take three to four years. The US Embassy is currently in Tel Aviv.
"I have no doubt that the moment the American Embassy moves to Jerusalem, and even before then, there will be a movement of many embassies to Jerusalem. The time has come," Netanyahu said.
"President Trump bound himself forever with the history of our capital," the Israeli PM said.
"His name will now be proudly displayed alongside other names in the city’s glorious history," he added.
But Haniyeh said in a speech that the “Zionist policy supported by the US cannot be confronted unless we ignite a new Intifada.”
