White House Signals Al-Buraq Wall Has to Be Part of ‘Israel’
Local Editor
Senior Trump administration officials outlined their view that al-Quds' al-Buraq Wall [Western Wall] ultimately will be declared a part of the ‘Israeli' apartheid entity, in another declaration sure to enflame 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 American officials - speaking ahead of Vice President Mike Pence's trip to the region -ruled out any scenario that didn't maintain the Zionist control over the holy site.
This issue is considered very sensitive because the wall abuts some of the Islamic world's most revered sites.
"We cannot envision any situation under which the Western [al-Buraq] 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.
The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss details of Pence's upcoming trip.
For his part, Nabil Abu Rdeneh, a senior adviser to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, reacted indignantly to the comments.
"We will not accept any changes on the borders of east al-Quds, which was occupied in 1967," Abu Rdeneh told The Associated Press. "This statement proves once again that this American administration is outside the peace process. The continuation of this American policy, whether the recognition of al-Quds as the capital of ‘Israel', or moving the American embassy, or such statements, by which the United States decides unilaterally on the issues of the final status negotiations, are a violation of international law and strengthen the ‘Israeli' occupation. For us, this is unacceptable. We totally reject it. And we totally denounce it."
Meanwhile, Pence plans to visit the al-Buraq Wall next week.
Al-Quds status has been a central issue in the decades-long Zionist-Palestinian conflict. Trump's announcement last week declaring al-Quds to be ‘Israel's' so-called ‘capital' shook up decades of US foreign policy and countered an international consensus that the holy city's status should be decided in negotiations between the Zionist regime and the Palestinians.
Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team
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