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Comment and Opinion

Times of Israel: While endorsing Israeli Jerusalem, Trump doesn’t rule out any of Abbas’s demands, by David Horovitz

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The most important question ahead of US President Donald Trump’s landmark speech on Wednesday recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel was what exactly — or, rather, where exactly — he would mean when he said “Jerusalem.” Would he specify “West Jerusalem?” No great achievement for Israel in that; even the Russians have done so. Would he speak of a “united Jerusalem” or a “unified Jerusalem,” as most of the Israeli leadership would wish? Or would he be constructively vague?

In fact, he found a fourth option. He declared America’s recognition of Jerusalem while subtly but clearly indicating that, for now, he was speaking about the ostensibly non-disputed Israeli areas of the city.

It was a simple fact that, for 70 years, modern Israel has made its capital in Jerusalem, Trump said. Indeed it has, but not in the entire city; East Jerusalem was captured 50 years ago, and Israeli sovereignty extended to that part of the city more than a decade later still.

Read the full article at Times of Israel.