Jerusalem is the Capital of Israel - 2002-10-01

Jerusalem is the Capital of Israel - 2002-10-01. President Bush signed a bill stating that the United States must recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel; however, the President also stated that the bill is advisory and not binding on U.S. policy. Congress included the recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel as a clause in the $4 billion budget bill for the State Department for the upcoming year, thereby forcing the President to either sign the bill or halt U.S. diplomatic activities due to lack of funding. Mr. Bush stated in a statement that U.S. policy regarding Jerusalem has not changed. U.S. Presidents have repeatedly emphasized that the status of Jerusalem should be determined in negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians. Recently, Arab countries condemned a U.S. law recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. By including the Jerusalem clause as an amendment in the new State Department budget, Congress compelled President Bush to sign the bill on Monday or face a halt in all U.S. diplomatic activities due to lack of financial resources. Mr. Bush stated that he would not move the U.S. embassy in Israel to Jerusalem. However, Palestinians claim that this bill violates the promise not to pre-determine the final status of Jerusalem. The Organization of Islamic Cooperation, which has 56 member countries, stated that this action would fuel anti-American sentiments among Muslims, and Qatar stated that this bill violates United Nations resolutions. On the other hand, Israeli snipers have returned to the West Bank and are monitoring Mr. Arafat's headquarters from rooftops. Israel claims it intends to prevent the escape of terrorists it says are hiding in Mr. Arafat's headquarters.