U.S. Expects Western Wall to be Part of Israel in Any Peace Deal

News Staff : Dec 18, 2017
JNS.org

"We cannot envision any situation under which the Western Wall would not be a part of Israel. -Whitehouse spokesperson

(Israel)—[JNS.org] The U.S. expects the Western Wall, one of Judaism's holiest sites, to be part of Israel in any future peace deal with the Palestinians, a senior Trump administration official said. (Photo: President Donald Trump visits Jerusalem's Western Wall on May 22, 2017/Credit: Matty Stern/U.S. Embassy Tel Aviv/via JNS.org)

"We cannot envision any situation under which the Western Wall would not be a part of Israel," the official said ahead of Vice President Mike Pence's trip to Israel next week. "But as the president said, the specific boundaries of sovereignty of Israel are going to be part of the final status agreement."

The official added that "we cannot imagine Israel would sign a peace agreement that didn't include the Western Wall."

While President Donald Trump recognized Jerusalem as Israel's capital last week, he did not outline the specific borders of the city nor control of its holy sites, including the Temple Mount and Western Wall.

Trump's international negotiations representative, Jason Greenblatt, will travel to Israel ahead of Pence's visit, although it is unclear if he will meet with Palestinian Authority officials, who are refusing to meet with Pence.

[Reprinted with permission of JNS.org]