UN Security Council to meet Friday on Jerusalem

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The UN Security Council will meet on Friday in an emergency session to discuss the decision made by US President Donald Trump to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, diplomats said on Wednesday.

The request for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to publicly brief the Security Council meeting was made by France, Bolivia, Egypt, Italy, Senegal, Sweden, Britain and Uruguay, said diplomats.

Trump announced Wednesday his recognition of Jerusalem as the capital city of Israel, and instructed the State Department to begin the process of moving the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

"I am determined that it is time to officially recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel," said Trump, adding he has judged "this cause of action to be in the best interests of the United States of America and the pursuit of peace between Israel and the Palestinians."

"This is a long overdue step to advance the peace process and to work towards a lasting agreement," he argued, saying his announcement is just a "recognition of reality," which he thought could be "necessary" to achieve peace.

Israel considers Jerusalem its eternal and indivisible capital and wants all embassies based in the city, while Palestinians want the capital of an independent Palestinian state to be in the city’s eastern sector, which Israel captured in a 1967 war and annexed in a move never recognized internationally.

"The UN has given Jerusalem a special legal and political status, which the Security Council has called upon the international community to respect. That is why we believe the Council needs to address this issue with urgency,” Deputy Swedish UN Ambassador Carl Skau said on Wednesday.

After Trump's annoucement, Guterres told reporters: “I have consistently spoken out against any unilateral measures that would jeopardize the prospect of peace for Israelis and Palestinians.”

"In this moment of great anxiety, I want to make it clear: There is no alternative to the two-state solution. There is no Plan B,” he said. “I will do everything in my power to support the Israeli and Palestinian leaders to return to meaningful negotiations.”