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CWA # 23, 10 June 2018
West Asia
Palestine: US triggers new tensions

  Miti Shah

Why did Trump want the embassy to move? Did it cause the current round of violence in Palestine? And does the international response to the move signify a new shift in international politics?

School of Liberal Studies, PDPU, Gandhinagar & Research Intern, National Institute of Advanced Studies, IISc (Bengaluru)

“A magnificent tribute to peace” proclaimed President Donald Trump as he addressed the inauguration of the move of the US embassy in Israel from Al Aviv to Jerusalem. Why did Trump want the embassy to move? Did it cause the current round of violence in Palestine? And does the international response to the move signify a new shift in international politics?

The Hegemonic Intervention
Since president Donald Trump took office, he announced that the US recognizes the whole of Jerusalem as a part of Israel. He added that not letting Israel take complete control of Jerusalem would affect its sovereignty. 
 
Palestinians residing in Gaza were enraged. A new campaign of protests broke out since March 2018  till the day of the inauguration of the embassy, encompassing a series of protests along the Israel-Gaza border. Domestically, the move appealed to the US hard-right factions within the Republican Party including evangelists, conservative, and pro-Israel elements. While President Trump believes that this move will get both the countries to have a truce, it seems unlikely since the decision had destroyed the two-state solution and disqualified Palestine from any role in the peace process.

While many former US presidents like Bill Clinton, George Bush Jr. had also indicated their support to Israel, Trump became the first to act upon it. The date of inauguration was selected as May 14, to coincide with the 70th Anniversary of Israel’s independence. "Today we officially opened the United States embassy in Jerusalem. Congratulations. It's been a long time coming," Trump said in a recorded video message. "For many years we failed to acknowledge the obvious, the plain reality that Israel's capital is Jerusalem." President Trump assured that this move was to ensure peace in the region.
 
The Return of Violence
After the last intifada, there were not any major violent attacks from any side and this was the longest period of peace. There was always a tension between the administrations of the two countries. Israel’s President Netanyahu campaigned during the 2015 elections that he won’t let there be a Palestine state under his watch. He also remarked that Palestinians are not trustworthy neighbours. Hamas also publicly said that he would ensure Israel’s destruction. Both the sides would only threaten each other but there were not any incursions. 
 
However, on the day of the inauguration, the peace fell. The Israeli government having claimed that the protest along the Gaza border had turned violent, deployed its military. There was a speculation that the Hamas militants were using these protests to carry violent acts and hence the Israeli soldiers had to use lethal force. This resulted in the death of many. The UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Nickolay Mladenov while briefing the council read that the reports suggested the death of nearly 60 people and 1300 were injured. He also added that Israeli security forces carried out 18 airstrikes and fired shells in the direction of 26 Hamas targets in response to the attacks.

The Domino Effect
After the United States moved its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, indicating its stand on the issue, many countries decided to join. Guatemala did next. Paraguay also announced that it will relocate while the Czech Republic, Romania, and Honduras are considering the move. Many Latin American countries have always sided with Israel. 
 
There is a historical connection, where Latin American countries helped by voting in the UN for the partition of the land and birth of Israel and since then the countries have been involved in constant trade and diplomatic ties. Hence, United States move made it possible for these countries to move without having to fear political and diplomatic resistance from the international community.
 
International Criticism
Many countries including the United States’ former allies are opposing this move and deny recognizing entire Jerusalem as a part of Israel. French president Emmanuel Macron said that this (move) was an error. He suggested clearly that France will not follow United States decision. Theresa May calls Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital “unhelpful for peace prospects”. UN also condemned this move by the US and does not recognize entire Jerusalem, a part of Israel.
 
The Arab league considers the US move as an unjust decision. With this high divide in the international community, such as European Union not siding with the United States, Arab countries in a distress and some Latin American countries wanting to consider the move, there seems a shift in the international system of states.

Collateral: Is there a shift in global power dynamics?
When Trump administration withdrew from the Paris Climate Change accord, it already enraged the global community. Later, when the administration walked out of the Iran deal, the European Union expressed its disappointment. United States was again the only country that voted against the draft by Kuwait to the UNSC for the protection of Palestinian civilians from Israeli attacks. On the other hand, it was also the only country to back its own measure to condemn Hamas for the recent violence on the Gaza strip. These events indicate how unipolarity in the world is moving towards a balance of power. 
 
The United States does not lose its position as a superpower, but these moves have affected its relations with its strong allies. There is not a major change in the alignment of the international politics but there is an indication of the emergence of strong unions that might curtail the hegemony

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