Credit: Wikipedia Public Domain /    U.S. Consulate General located between west and east Jerusalem

By Gary Raynaldo    DIPLOMATIC TIMES

The U.S. consulate in Jerusalem, which serves Palestinians, will be absorbed into the new U.S. Embassy to Israel on Monday, the State Department said. The consulate had primarily served the capital’s Palestinians and was the main channel of communication over the years between the U.S. administration and the Palestinian leadership.  

“There will be complete continuity of U.S. diplomatic activity and consular services during and after the merger. We will continue to conduct all of the diplomatic and consular functions previously performed by U.S. Embassy Jerusalem. We will also engage in a wide range of reporting, outreach, and programming in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, as well as with Palestinians in Jerusalem, through a U.S. Embassy Palestinian Affairs Unit (PAU), which will operate from our historic Agron Road location in Jerusalem. Our State Department and interagency teams on the ground do exceptional work every day in representing the United States to diverse audiences, reflecting their views back to Washington, and assisting American citizens. That critical work will be enhanced and will continue uninterrupted as we form a larger team.”   

Robert Palladino Deputy Spokesperson,   State Department.

Last October, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced the  decision to create a single diplomatic mission in Jerusalem.

Palestinians Concerned As Diplomatic Mission in Jerusalem Is Downgraded

“It [the merger] has nothing to do with efficiency and a lot to do with pleasing an ideological US team that is willing to disband the foundations of the international system.”

PLO Secretary-General Saeb Erekat said at the time of the announcement last year.

Palestine Sues U.S. At The International Court Over Embassy Move From Tel Aviv To Jerusalem

Credit: ( JACK GUEZ/AFP/Getty Images)  A picture taken on December 28, 2016 shows the US Embassy building in the Israeli coastal city of Tel Aviv.

The State of Palestine has instituted legal proceedings against the United States in the International Court Of Justice over Washington’s decision to move the US Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.  Filed in the United Nations top court, Palestine alleged the US move is a violation of the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations. On Dec. 6, 2017,  President Trump recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and announced the relocation of the American Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. The American Embassy in Jerusalem was then inaugurated May 14, 2018. The move upended seven decades of US foreign policy that has resisted a recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital before the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is resolved.

Credit: nbcnews.com /  U.S. Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin claps as Ivanka Trump unveils an inauguration plaque during the opening of the U.S. embassy in Jerusalem on May 14, 2018.  Menahem Kahana / AFP – Getty Images.