Arab Parliament blasts Britain's plan to relocate embassy to occupied al-Quds

The Arab Parliament has denounced the British government's plan to relocate its embassy from Tel Aviv to the occupied holy city of al-Quds, saying the move would constitute a flagrant violation of international law.

The legislative body of the Arab League in a statement on Wednesday reacted strongly to reports about the potential relocation of the British embassy, in what could jettison a longstanding policy of British governments.

“The legal, historical and religious status of al-Quds is not subject to review, and any step in this direction amounts to a flagrant violation of international law and of the historical responsibilities of Britain as the architect of the illegal Balfour Declaration, whose tragedy has long haunted the Palestinian nation,” said the statement.

Separately, a member of the Jordanian House of Representatives and Deputy Speaker of the Arab Parliament, Khalil Attia, warned Britain against the move.

Attia stressed that “moving the embassy to occupied al-Quds undermines the possibility of creation of a Palestinian state, and is an attack on international law and international legitimacy.”

Meanwhile, the Jordanian al-Islah (Reform) political party also censured British Prime Minister Liz Truss over her intention to move the UK embassy to al-Quds, rejecting the potential move as “racist and immature.”

Palestinians warn British PM Truss against following Trump, moving UK embassy to al-Quds

Palestinians express anger over reports that British Prime Minister Liz Truss is considering relocating the UK embassy in Tel Aviv to the occupied holy city of al-Quds.

“Her statements are rejected and condemned in the strongest terms. The remarks come from an official of a colonial state, which assisted Jews to occupy Palestine, commit crimes against the glorious Palestinian nation, and sow the seeds of discord and division among them,” it said in a statement.

“The comments regarding potential transfer of the British embassy to the occupied al-Quds indicate an unsuccessful start for the incumbent prime minister, and confirm constant insistence on the crimes that Britain has committed in the Arab region in general, and in Palestine in particular, the ugliest of which was the Balfour Declaration,” the party said.

The Balfour Declaration came in the form of a letter from Britain’s then-foreign secretary, Arthur Balfour, addressed to Lionel Walter Rothschild, a figurehead of the British Jewish community. It was published on November 2, 1917.

The declaration was made during World War I (1914-1918) and was included in the terms of the British Mandate for Palestine after the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire.

It is widely seen as the precursor to the 1948 Palestinian Nakba, when Zionist armed paramilitary groups, who were trained and created to fight side by side with the British in World War II, forcibly expelled more than 750,000 Palestinians from their homeland. 

Last month, Truss told the Israeli prime minister, Yair Lapid, that she was considering transferring the UK embassy in Tel Aviv to al-Quds. If it happens, the contentious policy shift would be similar to that of the US under ex-President Donald Trump in May 2018.

Angered by the UK premier’s announcement, the Palestinians described the statements as “a new Balfour Declaration” and said it proves Britain’s bias in favor of the Israeli regime.

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Britain

The Gaza-based Hamas and Islamic Jihad resistance movements have also taken strong umbrage to reports about the relocation of the British embassy.

“The announcement by British Prime Minister Liz Truss about her intention to move her country’s embassy to al-Quds is a flagrant bias toward the occupying regime,” Hamas spokesperson Abdel Latif Qanou said on September 21.

He warned that the move would not give Israel any legitimacy “over one inch of our land.”
Islamic Jihad senior official Mohammed Shalah accused Britain of displaying “arrogance” against Palestinians.

“We are not surprised by what Britain is doing in light of the ongoing Arab and Islamic silence,” Shalah said. “We blame the Arab and Islamic countries that are supposed to support al-Quds.”

Another Islamic Jihad official, Tareq Salmi, warned that the controversial British plan would anger Arabs and Muslims.

He denounced the move as a “hideous colonial aggression” against Palestinians, adding, “Britain is directly responsible for the tragedy of Palestinian people.”

Envoys of some Arab countries stationed in London also called on the Truss government in late September not to move the country's embassy from Tel Aviv to al-Quds.

The ambassadors in a letter said the plan could jeopardize talks on a free trade deal between the UK and the Persian Gulf Cooperation Council slated to be completed this year, the Guardian reported at the time.

Israel lays claim to the entire al-Quds, but the international community views the city’s eastern sector as occupied territory and Palestinians consider it the capital of their future state.

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