By Middle East Affairs
Speaking the language of diplomacy, Palestine called the envoys of Austria, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Romania for a hearing after attending the ceremony of the U.S’s embassy’s relocation to Jerusalem.
Palestine has recalled the envoys of the four European countries after they attended a gala on Sunday for the opening of the U.S. embassy.
Jerusalem in accordance to international accord was to be shared between Israel and Palestine. West Jerusalem was meant for Israel and East Jerusalem was intended for Palestine.
Relocating the embassy is seen as a power move by Israel and the U.S. to claim all of Jerusalem for Israel. The decision made by President Trump ignores the many Arabs who reside in the city and view Jerusalem as a holy site for Muslims.
Jerusalem has been home to three religions in history, Islam, Jewdism, and Christianity.
Austria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Romania acted against European Union policy that states that the embassy should not be moved to Jerusalem.
Dr. Amal Jadou, a Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs official said, “We highly value our relations with all EU member states. Those relations are based on the commitment to international law, UN resolutions and Human Rights.”
He continued by further explaining, “Therefore, we consider the participation in this event a contradiction to such values. Moving the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem was not only a hostile act against the people of Palestine as we mourn 70 years of Nakba, but is as well a violation of international law, particularly of UNSC Resolution 478.”
The Nakba is the Arabic term for disaster or catastrophe, it marks the day that 700,000 Palestinians were exiled from their homes and forced to become refugees.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas made the decision to expel the four envoys on Tuesday, at the same time that Husam Zomlot, the Palestine Liberation Organization’s main representative in Washington was on his way back to Palestine.
He told the Associated Press, “When they (the U.S.) opened their embassy in Jerusalem there was a need for a decision from our side and this was our decision.”
The opening of the U.S. embassy was in juxtaposition with tens of thousands of Palestinians who gathered in Gaza and the West Bank to protest the return of their homeland and to protest the relocation of the embassy.
Diplomatic envoys, alongside President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu, celebrated while Israeli forces shoot Palestinians, who they thought to be terrorists. Their act of terrorism according to Israel was approaching the fence in Gaza, which Israel thinks puts their security at risk.
Alongside live ammunition and tear gas bombs, Israeli forces killed 62 Palestinians, several of which were children and journalists.
The tear gas bombs were sent on a drone above the tents where Palestiains met for a moment of rest or prayer before approaching the fence. In one of the tents was Leila al-Ghandour, an eight-month infant that inhaled the gas which caused her death on Tuesday.
