(Yediot Ahronot-Hebrew, 21July2021) Justice Elyakim Rubinstein - It has been reported that the Americans want to reopen their consulate in Jerusalem that was closed after the U.S. moved its embassy to the city. It is proper to oppose such a move. There is no place for turning back the wheel of history. An independent consulate in Jerusalem, Israel's capital, would be a total anomaly. Until President Trump decided to move the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem, the American consulate served as a foreign implant in the heart of Jerusalem and acted in recent decades as an "embassy" to the Palestinian Authority. Its renewal today would be a double anomaly. I am sure that there is not another country in the world that has both an embassy and an independent consulate in its capital that serves as an "embassy" to another entity. Israel does not have to agree to the return of the continuing insult contained in such a move. The diplomatic lexicon is rich enough to enable the establishment of a liaison office to the Paletinian Authority in Ramallah without harming Israel's relations with the U.S. The writer is a former Vice President of the Supreme Court of the State of Israel. He also served as Attorney General.
2021-07-22 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive