Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced Monday that the U.S. will no longer view Israeli settlements in the West Bank, Golan Heights and East Jerusalem as “inconsistent with international law.”
Why it matters: This move is an important shift because it cancels a legal position held by the U.S. State Department since 1978, when the Carter administration determined that the settlements were a violation of international law.
- On the other hand, the move is mostly symbolic and will have no practical implications. The Trump administration didn’t see the settlements as illegal and this decision today will simply make it a more formal position.
Behind the scenes: A senior Israeli official told me Israel was consulted by the Trump administration on this issue several months ago. He said the U.S. wanted to know if this decision could harm Israel legally or internationally. Israel answered that it supports the move and that it will not harm the country in any way.
- A U.S. official told me this decision was several months in the making and the State Department was leading the process. The official said the decision was supposed to be announced last week, but that it was postponed because of the escalation around Gaza.
View the complete November 18 article by Barak Ravid from Israel’s Channel 13 news on the Axios website here.