Turkey announces to open embassy in East Jerusalem


FE Team | Published: December 17, 2017 19:48:56 | Updated: December 18, 2017 10:49:27


Turkey announces to open embassy in East Jerusalem

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan has announced to open an embassy in East Jerusalem.

The announcement was made on Sunday, days after leading calls at a summit of Muslim leaders for the world to recognise it as the capital of Palestine.

“God willing, the day is close when officially, with God’s permission, we will open our embassy there,” Erdogan said in a speech, maintaining his fierce criticism of the United States’ decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.

The Turkish leader has been one of the loudest voices in a global chorus of condemnation over Donald Trump's announcement that the US would break with decades of established foreign policy by relocating its embassy from Tel Aviv.

"With their decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital, the United States has become a partner in this bloodshed," Erdogan said at an event in Ankara.

According to Reuters, the draft declaration by the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) was issued following an extraordinary meeting of the 57-state group to hammer out a unified response to Trump's decision.

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