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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)
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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.

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Hemedti Aide: Ready for Talks to End Sudan War if Seriousness Shown

Ezz El-Din Al-Safi, senior adviser to the commander of Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Ezz El-Din Al-Safi, senior adviser to the commander of Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Hemedti Aide: Ready for Talks to End Sudan War if Seriousness Shown

Ezz El-Din Al-Safi, senior adviser to the commander of Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Ezz El-Din Al-Safi, senior adviser to the commander of Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (Asharq Al-Awsat)

A senior adviser to the commander of Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) said the group is open to serious negotiations with the government based in Port Sudan to end the country’s devastating conflict, now in its third year, provided there is genuine political will from the other side.

The remarks by Ezz El-Din Al-Safi, who is also a member of the RSF’s negotiating team, come as international actors prepare to meet in Brussels on Thursday in a bid to lay the groundwork for a ceasefire.

The talks are expected to include the European Union, African Union, the United States, the United Kingdom, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Bahrain.

“Negotiations could begin with confidence-building measures and credible arrangements,” Al-Safi told Asharq Al-Awsat.

“Dialogue remains the best path to ending a war that has no winners, only losers, both the people and the nation.”

He said the RSF is ready to discuss the location, timing, and possible mediators for peace talks, but stressed that any engagement must be met with equal seriousness by Sudan’s military-backed government.

However, Al-Safi cautioned that his group would not accept talks that merely allow the opposing side to regroup and secure external support to resume fighting.

“We cannot enter into a dialogue that gives the other party time to reorganize and rearm,” he said, adding that the RSF remains “at its strongest” on the battlefield.

Sudan’s army has conditioned any peace negotiations on the implementation of the Jeddah Declaration, a humanitarian agreement signed in May 2023. The deal, brokered by Saudi Arabia and the United States, has since been marred by mutual accusations of violations from both the military and the RSF.

Meanwhile, the RSF is pushing ahead with plans to form a rival administration in areas under its control.

Al-Safi, a senior adviser to RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti, said the group is nearing the formation of what he called a “government of unity and peace.”

He added that over 90% of the preparations for the announcement have been completed.

“The delay in announcing the government is due to ongoing consultations among members of the Founding Sudan Alliance [Tasis], which supports this move,” Al-Safi told Asharq Al-Awsat. “It’s not because of internal disagreements, as some have suggested.”

Asked about the planned capital of the parallel government, Al-Safi declined to name the city but suggested it would not be Khartoum.

“There are cities more beautiful than Khartoum,” he said. “From a strategic perspective, I believe the capital should be temporary and capable of accommodating all institutions of government.”

He only noted that the proposed city is located in territory controlled by the Tasis alliance.

The RSF’s moves come amid growing fears that the fragmentation of Sudan will deepen if parallel authorities are entrenched, further complicating efforts to reach a comprehensive peace.