The Great Smoky Mountain Journal

Staff, Wire Reports

Posted: Sunday, January 21, 2018 07:27 PM

Muslim Nations "Reject And Condemn" President Trump's Recognition Of Jerusalem As Capital Of Israel

Muslim nations have "rejected and condemned" President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, and have called on the world to recognize east Jerusalem as the capital of a Palestinian state.

The Istanbul Declaration on "Freedom for al-Quds" — the Arabic name of Jerusalem — follows Wednesday's extraordinary summit of the 57-member Organization of Islamic Cooperation.

The final communiqué is a softened version of an earlier draft. With it the organization declares the U.S. announcement as "null and void," while inviting Trump to reconsider and rescind the "unlawful decision that might trigger chaos in the region."

The declaration calls on countries who have not yet recognized Palestine to do so and invites "the whole world to recognize East Al Quds as the capital."

Trump's declaration last week upended decades of U.S. foreign policy and went against an international consensus that Jerusalem's final status — one of the thorniest issues in the Middle East conflict — should be decided by Israeli-Palestinian negotiations.

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5:30 p.m.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says the U.S-led Middle East peace process is now over following President Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

Erdogan spoke Wednesday at the closing of the summit of the 57-member Organization of Islamic Cooperation. Erdogan said it is "out of the question" for Washington to mediate between the Palestinians and the Israelis. He said: "That process is now over."

He said it is time for Muslim leaders to discuss among themselves who is to take Washington's role and to consider taking the matter to the U.N.

A draft communique from the summit called east Jerusalem the capital of a future Palestinian state, countering Trump's declaration. It said Washington has forfeited its decades-long role as a mediator.

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4:45 p.m.

Muslim nations are rejecting President Donald Trump's declaration of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, and appear set to counter it with a declaration of east Jerusalem as the capital of a future Palestinian state.

In a draft communique distributed to reporters, the 57-member Organization of Islamic Cooperation said Wednesday the U.S. decision was "null and void legally" and is considered an attack on the rights of the Palestinians.

The draft communique said the bloc considers the U.S. declaration as an "announcement of the U.S. administration's withdrawal from its role as sponsor of peace."

The Palestinians want east Jerusalem as the capital of their future state, and an international consensus has long held that the city's status should be decided in Israeli-Palestinian negotiations.

OIC leaders meeting in Istanbul were expected to release a final statement later Wednesday.

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2:10 p.m.

Iran's President Hassan Rouhani says the only reason Donald Trump "dared" recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel was because some in the region sought to establish ties to Israel.

Rouhani's comments on Wednesday came during the extraordinary summit of the Organization of Islamic Organization following Trump's decision. His comments were a stab at Iran's archrival, Saudi Arabia, referencing reports the Gulf kingdom has sought closer cooperation with Israel to counter Iran's influence in the region. Saudi Arabia has condemned Trump's decision in a rare public rebuke of Washington.

Rouhani also said the U.S. has never been an honest mediator.