The Western Wall and Palestinian Reaction to U.S. Views

The Palestinian Authority rejected statements from senior U.S. officials regarding the necessity of Israeli sovereignty over the area where the 'Western Wall' of the Jews is located in East Jerusalem. The presidency of the Palestinian Authority emphasized in a statement in Ramallah on Saturday, December 16, that 'we do not accept any changes to the borders of 1967 in East Jerusalem, and this U.S. position once again shows that the current U.S. administration has completely exited the peace process.' According to Palestinian media, Nabil Abu Rudeineh, spokesperson for the Palestinian Authority, stated, 'The continuation of U.S. policy, whether recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, moving the U.S. embassy to this city, or other unilateral decisions, is a departure from international legitimacy, and the Palestinians reject and find it unacceptable.' According to the Associated Press, White House officials told the agency on Friday, 'It is inconceivable that in a peace agreement, Israel would not have sovereignty over the Western Wall.' This comes as Donald Trump, in a statement on Wednesday, December 6, when recognizing Jerusalem as 'the capital of Israel,' stated that the parties to the conflict should determine the borders of this historic city under their sovereignty. Israel took control of East Jerusalem in the 1967 war, where the Western Wall at the foot of the Al-Aqsa and Umar mosques is part of the holy sites of this city. Mahmoud Abbas, the president of the Palestinian Authority, also emphasized last Wednesday at an emergency meeting of the member states of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation in Istanbul that after Trump's recent statement, the U.S. can no longer be a mediator in the peace process. Palestinian dissatisfaction with the U.S. has intensified ahead of the visit of U.S. Vice President Mike Pence to the region; according to the Palestinian Authority's presidency office, this government will discuss this matter in a meeting on Monday, one day before Pence's visit begins. Pence's trip, which will first visit Jordan and Egypt before Israel, has been delayed by several days; however, Israeli media reported that this delay was due to internal U.S. issues and the necessity of Pence's presence in Congress. Palestinian officials have previously emphasized that they will not accept Pence in the Palestinian territories, and Mahmoud Abbas will not meet with him; the U.S. has deemed this decision by the Palestinian government as unconstructive. Meanwhile, Israeli media, including Ynet, have linked the escalation of clashes in East Jerusalem on Friday, December 15, to the White House's recent statement regarding the necessity of Israeli sovereignty over the 'Western Wall.' According to these reports, during the clashes from Friday evening to Saturday morning, Palestinians threw Molotov cocktails and stones at Israeli security forces, including in the Issawiya and Al-Tur areas; the Jerusalem police confirmed the arrest of several individuals involved in the clashes, including two Palestinian sisters on suspicion of 'attacking an Israeli policewoman.' Despite these unrests, Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman stated on Friday that security cooperation between his country and the Palestinian Authority continues. According to Ynet, Lieberman stated that Mahmoud Abbas's survival is due to his continued security cooperation with Israel.