Friday, December 15, 2017
WASHINGTON (AP) — Senior Trump administration officials outlined their view today that Jerusalem's Western Wall ultimately will be declared a part of Israel, in another declaration sure to inflame passions among Palestinians and others in the Middle East.
Although they said the ultimate borders of the holy city must be resolved through Israeli-Palestinian negotiations, the officials – speaking ahead of Vice President Mike Pence's trip to the region – essentially ruled out any scenario that didn't maintain Israeli control over the holiest ground in Judaism. The issue is sensitive because the wall is beyond Israel's pre-1967 borders and abuts some of the Islamic world's most revered sites.
"We cannot envision any situation under which the Western Wall would not be part of Israel. But as the president said, the specific boundaries of sovereignty of Israel are going to be part of the final status agreement," a senior administration official said. Another official later added by email, "We note that we cannot imagine Israel would sign a peace agreement that didn't include the Western Wall." The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss details of the vice president's upcoming trip.
Pence plans to visit the Western Wall next week amid ongoing questions over whether the Trump administration will change longstanding U.S. policy by declaring the wall's location to be Israel, versus Jerusalem.
The administration officials said Pence would be accompanied by a rabbi to preserve the spiritual nature of his planned visit to the hallowed wall in Jerusalem's Old City. The officials said Pence's Wednesday visit would be conducted in a similar manner to when President Donald Trump visited the holy site in May.
Jerusalem's status has been a central issue in the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Trump's announcement last week declaring Jerusalem to be Israel's capital shook up decades of U.S. foreign policy and countered an international consensus that Jerusalem's status should be decided in negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians, who claim east Jerusalem as the capital of their future state.