US Officials Join Meeting to Discuss Establishing US Embassy in Jerusalem

A sign welcoming former President Donald Trump’s transfer of the US embassy to Jerusalem in May 2018. (Reuters)
A sign welcoming former President Donald Trump’s transfer of the US embassy to Jerusalem in May 2018. (Reuters)
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US Officials Join Meeting to Discuss Establishing US Embassy in Jerusalem

A sign welcoming former President Donald Trump’s transfer of the US embassy to Jerusalem in May 2018. (Reuters)
A sign welcoming former President Donald Trump’s transfer of the US embassy to Jerusalem in May 2018. (Reuters)

Representatives of US President Joe Biden’s administration have participated in a meeting held by the Jerusalem District Planning and Building Committee regarding the construction of the US embassy complex in the city, the mayor said.

In statements broadcast by the Hebrew Channel Seven, Jerusalem Mayor Moshe Lion noted that the meeting was held via Zoom app following the Committee’s earlier approval on plans to build two complexes for the US embassy.

The meeting confirms the new US administration’s intention to keep its embassy in Jerusalem, but Palestinians hope that the administration will reopen its consulate in the city as well.

This step aims to establish a permanent complex for the US Embassy in Jerusalem, after a temporary building was constructed in 2018 to serve the decision of former US President Donald Trump to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

The existing plans indicate extending the existing 12,800 square meters temporary embassy on David Flusser Street in the Arnona neighborhood to about 50,000 square meters. The current building contains office space for the ambassador and some employees.

In addition, a diplomatic complex for several embassies and an annex to the US embassy will be constructed in Allenby Street on an area of 60,000 square meters and will include offices and residential buildings for employees.

The diplomatic hotel that was previously used by the US Consulate and is now a residential building will not be evacuated until a suitable housing solution is found for those residing in it.

When the embassy was inaugurated in Jerusalem, an office space was constructed for the ambassador and a small team of employees. Later, an additional office space was constructed in the complex in Arnona, providing the ambassador and his team a temporary expanded space.

Most of the embassy employees continued to live and work in Tel Aviv during this period, and the case will not change before constructing a new embassy in Jerusalem.

Israeli officials expect the process of site selection, design, planning, obtaining permits, and building a permanent embassy to take few years.

They described this step as a lever for Jerusalem’s growth and development and a very significant and historic step.

Representatives of the US State Department also hailed this major step.



Iraq Holds Kurdish Government Legally Responsible for Continued Oil Smuggling

Kurdish protesters block the road in front of trucks carrying oil in the Arbat area near Sulaymaniyah, Iraq February 23, 2025. REUTERS/Ako Rasheed/File Photo
Kurdish protesters block the road in front of trucks carrying oil in the Arbat area near Sulaymaniyah, Iraq February 23, 2025. REUTERS/Ako Rasheed/File Photo
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Iraq Holds Kurdish Government Legally Responsible for Continued Oil Smuggling

Kurdish protesters block the road in front of trucks carrying oil in the Arbat area near Sulaymaniyah, Iraq February 23, 2025. REUTERS/Ako Rasheed/File Photo
Kurdish protesters block the road in front of trucks carrying oil in the Arbat area near Sulaymaniyah, Iraq February 23, 2025. REUTERS/Ako Rasheed/File Photo

Iraq's oil ministry said on Thursday it holds the Kurdish regional government (KRG) legally responsible for the continued smuggling of oil from the Kurdish region outside the country.

The ministry reserves the right to take all legal measures in the matter, it added.

Control over oil and gas has long been a source of tension between Baghdad and Erbil, Reuters reported.

Iraq is under pressure from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries to cut output to compensate for having produced more than its agreed volume. OPEC counts oil flows from Kurdistan as part of Iraq's quota.

In a ruling issued in 2022, Iraq's federal court deemed an oil and gas law regulating the oil industry in Iraqi Kurdistan unconstitutional and demanded that Kurdish authorities hand over their crude oil supplies.

The ministry said the KRG’s failure to comply with the law has hurt both oil exports and public revenue, forcing Baghdad to cut output from other fields to meet OPEC quotas.

The ministry added that it had urged the KRG to hand over crude produced from its fields, warning that failure to do so could result in significant financial losses and harm the country’s international reputation and oil commitments.

Negotiations to resume Kurdish oil exports via the Iraq-Türkiye oil pipeline, which once handled about 0.5% of global oil supply, have stalled over payment terms and contract details.