United States recognition of Jerusalem as capital of Israel

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On December 6, 2017, the United States of America officially recognized Jerusalem as the capital city of the State of Israel.^[1] American president Donald Trump, who signed the presidential proclamation, also ordered the relocation of the American diplomatic mission to Jerusalem from Tel Aviv, constituting what is now the Embassy of the United States in Jerusalem, which was established on the grounds of the former Consulate General of the United States in Jerusalem.^[2][3] Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomed the decision and praised the announcement by the Trump administration. On December 8, U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson clarified that Trump's statement "did not indicate any final status for Jerusalem" and "was very clear that the final status, including the borders, would be left to the two parties to negotiate and decide" in reference to the recognition's impact on the Israeli–Palestinian peace process.^[4]

Trump's decision was rejected by the vast majority of world leaders; the United Nations Security Council held an emergency meeting on December 7, where 14 out of 15 members condemned it, but the motion was overturned by U.S. veto power.^[5] The United Kingdom, France, Japan, Italy, and Sweden were among the countries who criticized Trump's decision at the meeting.^[6] Other countries supported the move; Guatemala affirmed their intent to issue a follow-up on the U.S. recognition and relocate their diplomatic mission to Jerusalem from Tel Aviv, and the Czech Republic, Honduras, Paraguay, and Romania stated that they were also considering the same course of action.^[7] Italian politician Federica Mogherini, as the foreign policy chief of the European Union (EU), stated that all EU member countries were united on the issue of Jerusalem—she reaffirmed the EU's firm stance on East Jerusalem being the capital of an independent Palestinian state.^[8] By late 2022, only Guatemala, Honduras, and Kosovo had established diplomatic missions to Israel in Jerusalem; Paraguay reversed their 2018 decision within months, and the Honduran foreign ministry has since stated that they are considering a reversal of their decision as well.^[9][10]

The Palestinian National Authority stated that the recognition and relocation disqualifies the U.S. from mediating peace talks, while Hamas called for the beginning of a new intifada against Israel in the aftermath of Trump's declaration.^[11][12][13] Following the U.S. announcement, Palestinians held demonstrations throughout the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, and pro-Palestinian demonstrations were held in various countries around the world.^[14] By December 25, 2017, Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip had fired almost 30 rockets towards Israel; though almost half of the rockets landed within the Gaza Strip itself, two of them inflicted minor property damage in Israel, having landed near the cities of Ashkelon and Sderot. In the aftermath of the attacks, Hamas reportedly arrested the perpetrating militants in an attempt to prevent an Israeli military response, which never occurred.^[15][16]

On February 23, 2018, the U.S. State Department announced that the new American embassy in Israel was scheduled to open in May of that year.^[17] It was officially inaugurated in Jerusalem on May 14, 2018—a date coinciding with Israel's 70th Yom Ha'atzmaut. Representatives from 32 countries were present at the event, including EU members Austria, the Czech Republic, and Romania.^[18] Along the Gaza–Israel border, the Israeli military responded to a massive Palestinian protest with tear gas and sniper fire, resulting in the deaths of at least 58 Palestinians and marking the highest single-day death toll since the 2014 Gaza War.^[19][20][21] The Israeli government defended the military's use of force as having been a necessary measure in the face of the protesters' throwing of rocks and explosives towards the Israelis. Just over a year later, on March 25, 2019, the Trump administration signed in another U.S. presidential proclamation recognizing the Golan Heights as part of Israel.