A new report has revealed that US President Joe Biden’s administration has abandoned its plan to reopen a consulate specifically designated for Palestinian affairs in the occupied city of al-Quds.
In a report published on Monday, the al-Quds-based Hebrew newspaper Israel Today said the Biden administration has given up on the establishment of a US consulate in the holy city, the Palestinian Information Center reported.
The report further noted that the United States intends to upgrade the post of Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Israel and Palestinian Affairs Hady Amr to the Special Envoy for Palestinians.
He would work directly with the Palestinian Affairs Unit (PAU) of the US Embassy in Israel, and indeed would be a separate representative for Palestinians in every sense, it added.
The latest development comes as the Israeli regime has already expressed its opposition to the US plan to reopen a consulate for Palestinians in occupied al-Quds, saying the move would challenge its “sovereignty” over the contested city.
Back in November, Israeli prime minister Naftali Bennett rejected the US-promised reopening of its consulate for Palestinians in East al-Quds.
He said at the time there was “no room” in al-Quds for the American diplomatic mission.
The administration of former US President Donald Trump signaled support for Israel’s claim on al-Quds as its “capital” by moving the American embassy there from Tel Aviv.
It also shuttered the US consulate in al-Quds, which had served as a de facto embassy for the Palestinians, saying it was no longer needed because the new embassy had taken over its functions.
Moving the US embassy to al-Quds was among several US acts against Palestinians, who want East al-Quds as the capital of their future state.
Biden had pledged to restore ties with the Palestinians and reopen the al-Quds consulate. However, he failed to meet his pledge.
East al-Quds was occupied by Israel in 1967 and effectively annexed three years later.
Israel lays claim to the entire al-Quds, but the international community views the city’s eastern sector as occupied territory.
United Nations Security Council Resolution 478, adopted on August 20, 1980, prohibits countries from establishing diplomatic missions in al-Quds.
