"US Consulate Merges with Embassy in Jerusalem" by Ma'an News Agency

       On Monday, March 4^th, 2019, the news agency called Ma’an reported on the United States consulate merging with the embassyin Jerusalem. The consulate was first established in the old city (East Jerusalem) in 1844 under the Ottoman Empire for communicative relations between Jerusalem, West Bank, and the Gaza Strip. It was created for the local communities to inquire and have access to government affairs and processes.  Over the years, the consulate has served predominantly Palestinians in Jerusalem, however it was open to all citizens that lived in Jerusalem. Palestinians will now be under the supervision of US Ambassador, David Friedman (selected by President Trump) who allegedly favors illegal settlement expansion. This places the Palestinians at a disadvantage for future diplomatic missions within the new consulate and embassy. 

City of Jerusalem

       The article quotes US Deputy State Department spokesperson, Robert Palladino, insisting that the merge will not stop any diplomatic or consular performance. Palladino also explains that the merge is meant to increase the effectiveness and quality of operations handled by the consulate alongside the embassy. Future communication between Palestinians with the consulate are now being directed by the Palestinian Affairs Unit located at Agron Road. The Palestinians feel inadequately represented in diplomatic affairs due to the merging of the two political entities which subsequently favors Israeli politics. Israel has longed for Jerusalem to be recognized as its capital, and with the movement of the embassy and now the merging of the consulate, they seem to be closer to their goal. On the other hand, Palestinians desperately have hoped for Jerusalem to be there capital once they obtain an independent state of Palestine. The merging reduces the ability for the Palestinians ambitious plans to have East Jerusalem as their capital.

The article includes the point of view from PLO (Palestinian Liberation Organization) Executive Committee Member, Hanan Ashrawi on behalf of the merge. She believes that this is “an act of political assault on the Palestinian rights and identity” since the historical foundation of the consulate served mostly Palestinian peoples living in Jerusalem for many centuries (Ma’an). Her subjective opinion portrays a discontent with US political authority and administration and stresses the point that the Trump administration does not care for Palestinian lives. Ashrawi is correct to claim the consulate aided Palestinians for many years (since 1844 – but not centuries), however her quote is based on hearsay evidence and not actual fact.

There is no author attributed, but the language of the article is speculative towards the act of the merging between the US consulate and embassy in Jerusalem. The reporter or journalist for this article uses reliable information, however they do not emphasize accurate statistics regarding the International consensus for the status of Jerusalem. According to the article, the International Consensus has implied its positionality for a peaceful resolution on behalf of Jerusalem’s status to be the capital for either side without political party prejudices. This is an objective statement by the reporter, because it is not in favor of one side over the other. It is not clear which countries have made their opinion public and if it was accounted for within the consensus. It also does not mention if the consensus may have been from a vote in the UN General Assembly. The tone of the article highlights the setbacks for Palestinians more so than the gratitude of the Israelis.

In news agency named Arutz Sheva has a notably different perspective about the US consulate merging with the embassy in Jerusalem. The article, “US to close east Jerusalem consulate,merge it with embassy” was written by a staff member with favorable language towards Israel and the merge. Arutz Sheva is a right-wing news agency, and right-wingpolitics in Israel tends to favors settlement expansion, and believes that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict cannot be resolved by negotiations. The article has a predictive subject matter when it quotes US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo as claiming the merge as a step towards a peaceful future for a collaborative work space between Palestinians and Israelis in the consulate and embassy. He is a more credible source to quote, and this article paints a much different perspective about the action of a merge in Jerusalem.