This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/dec/14/australian-government-to-recognise-jerusalem-as-israels-capital
The article has changed 15 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Australian government to recognise West Jerusalem as Israel's capital | Australian government to recognise West Jerusalem as Israel's capital |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| The Australian government will formally recognise West Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, but the embassy will not be moved from Tel Aviv until the city’s status is finalised under a peace settlement. | The Australian government will formally recognise West Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, but the embassy will not be moved from Tel Aviv until the city’s status is finalised under a peace settlement. |
| The prime minister, Scott Morrison, will announce the foreign policy shift in a speech to the Sydney Institute on Saturday, the Australian newspaper reports. | The prime minister, Scott Morrison, will announce the foreign policy shift in a speech to the Sydney Institute on Saturday, the Australian newspaper reports. |
| The government will also commit to recognising a future state of Palestine with its capital in East Jerusalem after a settlement has been reached on a two-state solution. | The government will also commit to recognising a future state of Palestine with its capital in East Jerusalem after a settlement has been reached on a two-state solution. |
| Morrison is also expected to say the more controversial relocation of the Australian embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem will be delayed until a peace settlement is reached. | Morrison is also expected to say the more controversial relocation of the Australian embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem will be delayed until a peace settlement is reached. |
| Palestinians call on Muslim states to target Australian exports over Jerusalem embassy | |
| Palestinian leaders are already lobbying Arab and other Muslim states to drop Australian exports and withdraw their ambassadors from Canberra in the event of an embassy move to Jerusalem. | Palestinian leaders are already lobbying Arab and other Muslim states to drop Australian exports and withdraw their ambassadors from Canberra in the event of an embassy move to Jerusalem. |
| While the embassy move is delayed, the government will establish a defence and trade office in Jerusalem and start looking for an embassy site. | While the embassy move is delayed, the government will establish a defence and trade office in Jerusalem and start looking for an embassy site. |
| In October, Australia’s spy agency Asio warned any embassy move may “provoke protest, unrest and possibly some violence in Gaza and the West Bank”. When the US embassy opened in Jerusalem in May it sparked protests in Gaza which left 58 Palestinians dead and 1,200 wounded. | |
| According to the Australian newspaper, Morrison will say in his speech on Saturday: “The Australian government has decided that Australia now recognises West Jerusalem – as the seat of the Knesset [Israel’s legislative body] and many of the institutions of government – is the capital of Israel. And we look forward to moving our embassy to West Jerusalem when practical, in support of, and after, final-status determination.” | According to the Australian newspaper, Morrison will say in his speech on Saturday: “The Australian government has decided that Australia now recognises West Jerusalem – as the seat of the Knesset [Israel’s legislative body] and many of the institutions of government – is the capital of Israel. And we look forward to moving our embassy to West Jerusalem when practical, in support of, and after, final-status determination.” |
| In May, when the US moved its embassy to Jerusalem, it sparked massive protests in Gaza which resulted in the deaths of 58 Palestinians. Ever since Donald Trump’s declaration in December last year, Israel has been pushing hard to persuade other countries to follow. | In May, when the US moved its embassy to Jerusalem, it sparked massive protests in Gaza which resulted in the deaths of 58 Palestinians. Ever since Donald Trump’s declaration in December last year, Israel has been pushing hard to persuade other countries to follow. |
| In October, Morrison said he was “open to” to the move, describing it as a “sensible” proposal. | In October, Morrison said he was “open to” to the move, describing it as a “sensible” proposal. |
| Morrison, an evangelical Christian, immediately faced questions about whether his religious views had played a part in his decision to float the proposal. “My faith and religion has nothing to do with this decision,” he said. | Morrison, an evangelical Christian, immediately faced questions about whether his religious views had played a part in his decision to float the proposal. “My faith and religion has nothing to do with this decision,” he said. |
| Wentworth byelection: Jewish voters split over embassy switch to Jerusalem | |
| Instead, he argued the status quo in Israeli-Palestinian relations had failed to make headway. “The orthodoxy that’s driven this debate which says issues like considering the question of the capital are taboo. I think we have to challenge that,” he said. | Instead, he argued the status quo in Israeli-Palestinian relations had failed to make headway. “The orthodoxy that’s driven this debate which says issues like considering the question of the capital are taboo. I think we have to challenge that,” he said. |
| The embassy move idea was first floated by Morrison in October in the week leading up to the byelection in Wentworth – a seat where 12.5% of the electorate are Jewish, according to the 2016 Census. The byelection was ultimately won by Kerryn Phelps, who beat Liberal candidate Dave Sharma, who is not Jewish but was a former ambassador to Israel. | |
| The government said the embassy proposal was flagged due to a vote on the UN general assembly resolution on the Palestinian Authority chairing the G77. But the byelection in Wentworth, once held by ousted PM Malcolm Turnbull, was also widely considered a factor. | |
| Phelps said at the time the policy was nothing more than “a politically motivated move”. | |
| “To announce [the embassy move] without bipartisan discussion, without comprehensive analysis of the defence, security and trade implications, this should not have been raised in the context of the byelection,” she said. “There’s no question that this was a politically motivated decision”. | |
| Australian Associated Press contributed to this report | |
| Israel | Israel |
| Middle East and North Africa | Middle East and North Africa |
| Scott Morrison | Scott Morrison |
| news | news |
| Share on Facebook | Share on Facebook |
| Share on Twitter | Share on Twitter |
| Share via Email | Share via Email |
| Share on LinkedIn | Share on LinkedIn |
| Share on Pinterest | Share on Pinterest |
| Share on Google+ | Share on Google+ |
| Share on WhatsApp | Share on WhatsApp |
| Share on Messenger | Share on Messenger |
| Reuse this content | Reuse this content |