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US Consulate to Open in Jerusalem Soon

US consulate in Jerusalem (AP)
US consulate in Jerusalem (AP)
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US Consulate to Open in Jerusalem Soon

US consulate in Jerusalem (AP)
US consulate in Jerusalem (AP)

A high-ranking Israeli official told the Israeli channel i24news that the US Consulate will open in Jerusalem soon.

In the past few months, the administration of President Joe Biden informed Israel that it was about to open the US consulate in Jerusalem unilaterally if Naftali Bennett's government had not responded to the matter after approving the general budget.

The Biden administration has worked to reach understandings with Israel about the consulate, but to no avail.

Biden insists on reopening a US consulate to deal with Palestinian affairs, in a clear indication of dramatic change to the policy of his predecessor Donald Trump regarding Palestine.

Trump closed the consulate in Jerusalem in 2019 after moving his country's embassy from Tel Aviv and recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. The consulate was merged with the embassy as part of a plan known as the "Deal of the Century."

The US consulate in Jerusalem is the subject of a "political" and "sovereign" conflict between the Palestinians and the Israelis.

For over 20 years, the consulate has been the diplomatic representation to the Palestinian Authority (PA), which issues visas and overlooks various projects, including humanitarian and financial aid.

Unlike Trump, Biden supports the two-state solution, curbing settlement activity, and financially supports the PA.

The government source confirmed that despite Washington's position, the Israeli government is in the process of announcing a new settlement plan in East Jerusalem.

The plan includes constructing thousands of settlement units in the city.

Israeli Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked admitted there were differences with the US administration.

On settlements, Shaked said the sides would simply have to "agree to disagree" on the issue. "That's how it is."

"There are gaps between the current American administration and our position on building in Judea and Samaria. We need to understand that these gaps exist and learn to work with them," she said.

Shaked rejected the possibility of a compromise that would see settlement construction limited by amount or location. "No, this is out of the question," she said.

"We have no problem doing everything in coordination [with the US], as much as possible, if they want. But we're not changing our policy," the interior minister noted.

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In Syria's Devastated Jobar, Cemetery Comes Alive for Eid

Syrians visit the graves of their loved ones in the Jobar suburb of Damascus on the first day of Eid al-Adha. LOUAI BESHARA / AFP
Syrians visit the graves of their loved ones in the Jobar suburb of Damascus on the first day of Eid al-Adha. LOUAI BESHARA / AFP
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In Syria's Devastated Jobar, Cemetery Comes Alive for Eid

Syrians visit the graves of their loved ones in the Jobar suburb of Damascus on the first day of Eid al-Adha. LOUAI BESHARA / AFP
Syrians visit the graves of their loved ones in the Jobar suburb of Damascus on the first day of Eid al-Adha. LOUAI BESHARA / AFP

Only the cemetery in Damascus's devastated suburb of Jobar showed signs of life on Friday as residents returned to visit and pray for Eid al-Adha, the first since Bashar al-Assad's fall.

Jawdat al-Qais fought back tears as he knelt at the tomb of his father, who died less than a month ago, AFP said.

"His wish was to be buried in Jobar -- and Jobar was liberated and he was buried here," said Qais, 57.

"We carried out his wish, thank God," he said, adding that "many people haven't been able to be buried in their hometowns."

Once home to around 350,000 people, Jobar was turned into a wasteland due to heavy fighting from the start of Syria's civil war, which erupted in 2011 with Assad's brutal repression of anti-government protests.

In 2018, an accord between Assad's government and opposition factions allowed fighters and their families to evacuate.

After being forced out, Jobar's residents have returned for Eid al-Adha, the biggest holiday in Islam, during which it is customary to pay respects to the dead.

Among the utter ruin of the district, the call to prayer rose from damaged mosque's minaret as dozens of faithful gathered both inside and out.

Population 'zero'

In the deathly silence, devastated buildings line barely passable roads in Jobar, which is also home to a historic synagogue.

At the cemetery, which was also damaged, residents -- including former fighters in wheelchairs or using crutches -- came together after years of separation, some drinking coffee or eating dates.

"The irony of Jobar is that the cemetery is the only thing bringing us life, bringing us together," Qais said.

Some visitors struggled to find their loved ones' tombs among the overturned headstones.

A few etched names or drew rudimentary signs to help identify them on the next visit.

"I found my mother's tomb intact and I wept," said Jihad Abulmajd, 53.

He said he has visited her grave regularly since Assad's December 8 ouster.

"We find peace here, with our ancestors and relatives," he told AFP.

The day after Assad was toppled, Hamza Idris, 64, and his family returned to Jobar from Idlib in the country's northwest, where they fled in 2018.

He said a definitive return to the ghost town, whose infrastructure has been destroyed, was impossible.

"Jobar's population... is zero," he said after praying in front of the mosque.

"Even the cemetery wasn't spared the bombs," said Idris, who lost three children during the war and was unable to visit their graves until Assad's ouster.

"The town is no longer habitable. It needs to be entirely rebuilt," he said.