Israel travel warning as Donald Trump calls Jerusalem capital

Australian travellers have been warned of potential Middle East violence over Donald Trump’s capital call on Jerusalem.

Foreign Minister Julie Bishop. Picture: AAP

Australia has warned travellers heading to Jordan, Israel, the Gaza Strip and the West Bank of likely large protests that could turn violent in the wake of US President Don­ald Trump’s decision to recognise Jerusalem as ­Israel’s capital and move the US embassy there. Travellers have been urged to avoid demon­strations and large gatherings that may result in ­violence.

Foreign Minister Julie Bishop was quick to confirm yesterday that Australia would not follow the US decision, and would leave its embassy in Tel Aviv. She said the government was reviewing its travel advice to the Middle East amid escalating tensions.

“The political identification of the status of Jerusalem is a matter for final-status negotiations,” Ms Bishop said. “That has always been our position, it has been a longstanding position from both sides of the Australian ­parliament.”

Opposition foreign affairs spokeswoman Penny Wong said the US move was “not helpful to the peace process”.

Mr Trump’s decision, which reversed decades of US foreign policy, sparked divisions between Australia’s Jewish and Muslim communities. While critics believe US recognition of Jerusalem will undermine, if not destroy, the prospect of a Washington-­brokered peace deal, Mr Trump said the US would continue to push strongly for such a deal.

The prospect of an ongoing US role was undermined by Palestine Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, who described the announcement as a “declaration of withdrawal” by the US from the peace process.

Mr Trump was undeterred by the international criticism, saying the move was “a long overdue step to advance the peace process”. He said Jerusalem was the seat for the country’s parliament, the prime minister and its highest court.

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade warned on its Smart Traveller website that Palestinians had called for protests in Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza in response to the US announcement — but left its level of advice for Israel unchanged. “Large protests are likely, particularly after Friday prayers, and could result in violence,” it said.

DFAT also warned of an “increased possibility of large-scale protests” in Jordan.

The Executive Council of Australian Jewry welcomed Mr Trump’s decision as a “pragmatic acknowledgment of an existing ­reality”.

The Australian Federation of Islamic Council condemned the move as “provocative and dangerous” and urged the Turnbull government to oppose the decision.

ECAJ president Peter Wertheim said the area in which Israel’s parliament and other gov­ern­ment buildings were located in west Jerusalem had been part of Israel’s sovereign borders since 1948.

“Recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital is therefore a pragmatic acknowledgment of an existing reality,” Mr Wertheim said.

He said the government precinct in west Jerusalem, where the US embassy would likely be relocated, was not disputed territory, unlike the area in the city’s east captured from Jordan in 1967.

“Moving the embassy from one location within Israel’s sovereign borders to another therefore does not pre-empt the outcome of ­negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians for a two-state ­solution,” Mr Wertheim said.

AFIC president Rateb Jneid said the move was “provocative and dangerous” and urged the Turnbull government to “come out clearly in its opposition to such an announcement and assure the Palestinian people that they are not being abandoned once again by the nations of the world”.

He said AFIC was concerned about the precedent the decision set and warned it would discourage Palestinians from involving Americans in the peace process.

“It is well acknowledged by the international community that the status of Jerusalem is a key point in the negotiation of a long-term peace between Palestinians and Israelis,” Mr Jneid said.

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomed Mr Trump’s announcement, calling it “a historic day” and stating that his nation was “profoundly grateful for the President for his courageous and just decision.”

Additional reporting: Primrose Riordan