Prelate urges Tillerson not to move US embassy to Jerusalem

February 07, 2017

The chairman of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on International Justice and Peace called upon Secretary of State Rex Tillerson not to move the US embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

“Relocating the embassy to Jerusalem is tantamount to recognizing Jerusalem as the undivided capital of Israel,” Bishop Oscar Cantú of Las Cruces said in a letter to Tillerson. “Moving the embassy to Jerusalem would erode the U.S. commitment to a two-state solution, and is a threat to pursuing peace and ending conflict.”

“Settlement expansion, confiscation of lands and the building of the Separation Wall on Palestinian lands violate international law and undermine a diplomatic solution,” Bishop Cantú added, as he recalled the suffering of Christians affected by the wall in the Cremisan Valley near Bethlehem.

 

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Further information:

• Chair of USCCB International Committee Calls on Trump Administration to Pursue Peace between Israelis and Palestinians (USCCB)
• Letter to Secretary Tillerson on Israel and Palestine (USCCB)