The United States moved their embassy in Israel 2 miles south from the Western Wall in Jerusalem. Israelis are full of joy and also concern of this placement. They like that President Trump and the US is recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's capital, but they are worried about how the Palestinians will act. Palestinian protests containing thousands of people have formed, and they are trying to cross the border into Israel. Israeli snipers have been shooting the protesters have killed and injured thousands. Israel police are bracing for attacks of pent up anger and impatience because of Israel's continued control, America not doing anything to balance out the matter, and the Palestinian government being weak and corrupt. Saudi Arabia and the Persian Gulf states are trying to keep hopes high for Israel to expand their relationships. Most Israelis see the new placement of the embassy an acknowledgment that Jerusalem is Israel's capital, while Palestinians see it as an abdication of any vestige of American impartiality in determining the region's future.
1. Should the United States be responsible for dealing with the protests and if so, how should they?
2. What could happen to Palestinians if Israel did create new relationships with other countries in their region?
3. Was moving the embassy a good idea?
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I believe the United States should be partially responsible for dealing with the protests as they did move their embassy two miles south leading to the disruption. The United States should maybe start by announcing the issue and persuading people to stop protesting. Also they could also possibly move back the placement of the embassy back to the original location so the Palestinians have no point of rioting. If Israel did create new relationships with other countries in their region, Palestinians might riot even harder leading to even more casualties. I believe moving the embassy was not a good idea because many people died because the United States decided to move their embassy closer to the wall. Also I didn't really find the benefit of moving the embassy two miles closer to the wall. It just caused more conflict and had no benefits.
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ReplyDeleteI hit the stress ball into the pool today
DeleteThanks Brian
DeleteI believe that the US is responsible for creating this mess therefore they should also be responsible for protests that are occurring because of it. They should create a compromise for the Palestinians because they do not want to give up Jerusalem and many of them do not recognize Jerusalem as its capital. The US could start off by moving the placement of the embassy back to its original location to calm some of the protests. The Palestinians do not have much money so this change of the US embassy is only causing lives. There was no point in moving the embassy except to make a statement and make other people very angry.
ReplyDeleteIf Israel strengthens relationships with Saudi Arabia and the Persian Gulf States, Palestinians would be surrounded and without allies. They would have even more land and rights taken away from them because they aren't strong enough to fight back. I do not believe it was a good idea to move the embassy because it has caused much unrest for Israelis and Palestinians. It stops all the progress made for reconciliation between these two groups and makes it harder to pursue peaceful relations. The US has also become less of a fair mediator and more of an Israel biased country with this move.
ReplyDeleteLike Abby, I think that moving the embassy was unnecessary and not a good idea. The move alienated and upset the Palestinians, leading to the excessive bloodshed of Jews and Palestinians alike. However, I don't believe moving the embassy back is a wise decision because it shows inconsistency and incompetency on behalf of the US. Instead, the US should take responsibility for the violence they incited, whether intentionally or unintentionally. If the end goal is peace, the US could start by shifting back to a more neutral stance on the Israel-Palestine conflict, instead of "[dispensing] with any pretense at balance," as it seems the Trump Administration has been doing (nytimes.com). The US could also issue some statement or take some action that shows Palestinians that their hopes of gaining statehood with East Jerusalem as their capital are still possible.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Josie about how moving the embassy was not a step into the right direction and I believe that US should be responsible for this because they are the ones who moved it and because they moved it, so much chaos and rioting is occurring. I think that even though the US may not have known the consequences of their actions, they should still have thought before making such a move. There is already so much conflict and unrest between Israelis and Palestinians and the US knows this, so they should have been responsible enough to make a wiser decision. They should now start focusing on ways to create a little bit of that peace that was present between them, again. They should calm down the protestors and probably even move the embassy back to where it was. I think that the US now needs to fix their mistake and make sure that both sides are equally happy to ensure the safety of the citizens.
ReplyDeleteThe opening of the new embassy in Jerusalem makes it harder for the Palestinian to cross the border, and this makes them vulnerable to the Jerusalem forces. From Palestinians "accept the racist legislation that Israel passes; that we’re prisoners in our land: I can’t get a visa because we’re ‘all terrorists" (NYT). These Palestinians don't feel at home, also the US should be responsible because the US has "aided totaled around $600 million annually in recent years" (The Time of Israel), and this means they should definitely be in trouble.
ReplyDelete1) The US should take responsibility for the protests because they are the one who is contributing to these protests that are starting. The US needs to make a plan with Israel and Palestine discussing where the capital is because if all that America does is just verbally announce that Jerusalem is the capital, then the citizens will continue to protest. If the US and Israel and Palestine can't make an agreement then the US needs to take back what they said because all that America is doing is starting more controversy and protests which is not what Israel needs right now.
ReplyDeleteI don’t think that it is the US’s responsibility to deal with the protests in Jerusalem and the surrounding region. For instance, the protests on the Gaza-Israel border are so chaotic and violent that the US getting involved would probably just add to the violence and be a waste of money and time. Also, according to the New York Times, the demonstration on Tuesday were backlash at the violence the protesters from the previous day received, and those protests were express their anger toward the blockade that has caused Gaza to suffer economically, which just happened to coincide with the US deciding to move the embassy. And, I don’t think that the US moving its embassy was a good idea at all because it wasn’t really all that necessary. All it really was was the US making a statement saying that it thinks Israel should have control of Jerusalem, which completely disregards the Palestinians, and the US didn’t need to make that sort of statement because Israel is already friendly with the US. All it did was create conflict and controversy. I think that by moving the embassy the US just made the conflict with the Israelis and Palestinians worse, pushing people further apart instead of trying to work toward a peaceful solution.
ReplyDeleteAs the author of an older blog post related to this topic, I continue to believe (and agree with others’ arguments) that moving the embassy is a very bogus action taken by the US government. It only results in more chaos between the Israelis and Palestinians in an area that has been recognized by many as very religiously sensitive. As some may recall from my earlier post, these are the exact reason why the UN immediately attempted to shut down Trump’s declaration to move the embassy due to the tension it would build between the two ethnic groups. As for the Palestinians, they had previously agreed not to do any peace negotiations with the US, and have now become more enraged by the US’s decisions. The more the US attempt to help Israel by building an embassy two miles closer to Palestine, the harder the Palestinians will attempt to fight back. This scenario is far from ideal if Israel and Palestine had previously aimed to create a two-state solution, and will not solve any of the ongoing tensions. In addition to that, I do want to bring up the point that the move could greatly threaten the Palestinians in the sense that it encourages them to create new relations with Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan—countries which surround the area. If these relations succeeded, it could lead Israel’s territory to completely engulf Palestine, thus becoming an even more problematic situation for the Palestinians. From my standpoint, it seems that the US’s decision may put the possibility of a two-state solution out of contention.
ReplyDeleteII agree with basically everyone else: moving the embassy was a bad idea. It established the US in a less-mediator role, probably giving the US less credibility and/or influence potentially. The US—whether directly or indirectly—instigated the violence currently occurring in Israel, hence they should be taking responsibility for it, and lend aid to dealing with the protests—the US has proven that it has the resources to lend aid. If Israel created new relationships with other countries, Palestinians could potentially be more oppressed, leading to more riots, and so forth: the Palestinians could become even more surrounded, like Brian and others have stated, causing their situation to become even more problematic.
ReplyDeleteThe moving of the embassy was not a smart move. The embassy suddenly has become a sort of physical symbol of the US-Israel relation and is something that will constantly remind the arab states of the connection between US and Israel.
ReplyDeleteI think the US should be partially responsible for the protests, but not entirely responsible. They should leave it partially up to the government of that region, but should help them to reduce protests as much as possible, and contribute to trying to subdue the people. If Israel creates relationships with other countries in the region, it could single out the Palestinians, and cause them to be against the other people in their own region, which would be bad for the Palestinians. I don't really think that moving the embassy was a good idea because it puts the US in a position that shows they are bias, and are on the side of the Israelis. This stirs up a lot of controversy, and protests toward the US, and just isn't of any benefit.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the US needs to take responsibility for the protests as they were in reaction to the moving of the embassy. The move was not a good idea as it has only raised tensions between the two groups. I agree with Riddhi that the US should move the embassy back to its original location & then find some way to create a compromise. Either way moving the embassy back to its original spot seems to be the best way to deal with this situation, as it was just a bad idea with no real benefits.
ReplyDeleteI think that during the current situation with the tense situations that are present in the region between the Palestinians and the Israelis, the move of the US embassy was not entirely justified. This move shows that the US is supporting the fact that Jerusalem is part of Israel which the Palestinians are very opposed to. As seen by the current result, hundreds of Palestinians are fiercely opposing the move which has only resulted in the deaths of many Palestinians. This is only furthering the tense situation that is in the area which is why the move was a bad move. Furthermore, the US is not obligated to intervene in the area for the outcome of their actions because it is not their country, but it would be a good thing to do to help diffuse the situation and assist the ethnics groups in the area.
ReplyDeleteI think that the US should be responsible or the protest but not all of the protest as Samantha Hou said.The US should not be doing anything to provoke the territorial war that is going on with Jerusalem and Palestine. The US should try to release the tension between the two and moving the embassy did not do any of that. In fact moving the embassy might have ignited the fire between the two. The US is known for the money that they posses and with that in mind they should be able to help the fights that are happening.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the US should take some of the responsibility for dealing with the protests since they instigated another fight between Israel and Palestine. However, with the US's involvement, it could add additional violence and make matters worse in this case between Palestine and Israel. With the US moving their embassy from Israel to Jerusalem, it shows the US's favor to Israel having power over Jerusalem. It makes the Palestinians feel inferior due to the amount of attention that Israel has been getting. I think that it is good that Israel is beginning to make relations with other countries in their region like Saudi Arabia and the Persian Gulf, but it puts the Palestinians at a disadvantage. They have a lot less territory in the Middle East compared to the territory Israel has power over. I don't believe that moving the embassy was a good idea since it created more tension between the two regions when there is still conflict between Palestine and Israel on whether Palestine or Israel has power over Jerusalem.
ReplyDeleteThough the US shouldn't take full responsibility, they definitly deserve to take some. Since it was the US's decision to move said embassy in order to further acknowledge that Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. But because the fighting between Israelis and Palestinians is such a well known issue, they had to have known that there were going to be repercussions. In order to fix these problems though may be a bit complicated. Since the problem is not going to be easily fixed. It will take a lot of communication to make both sides happy. I think that maybe holding an open discussion in order to staunch some of the deep rooted issues plaguing both Palestine and Israel
ReplyDeleteYeah, the US is one third of the mess here so it'd make sense that they try and clean up some of the dealings over there. Honestly, to a certain degree I respect the US government's straightforward mentality towards the whole situation, what they've done truly takes a lack of forethought that very few can ever aspire to achieve. That being said, in my opinion it's deeply immoral to ignite a violent situation, which most people could see from a mile away, and to just leave it there for two far less equipped oppositions to deal with. Neither side will let up, they both have many reasons to be angry at one another. I say this as someone who leans towards the side of Israel, that the Palestinians have every right to feel the way they feel, because what the US has done in the last year is simply unnecessary. They've just alienated the Palestinians through their maneuvers in the region, and moving the embassy is a prime example of that. So no, I don't think it was a good idea, but at the same time I feel there must be some level of justifiability that many of us just can't see, and in time hopefully it'll show through. I'm surely hoping that the US has economic or political plans for that region, because otherwise what they've been doing there will ultimately have done nothing but made things worse.
ReplyDeleteThere would be no reason for the US to deal with protests about moving an embassy, since it is technically not supposed to be under the influence of foreign jurisdiction. If Israel created better relations with neighboring countries, it could put even more pressure on Palestinians, potentially leading to the complete takeover of their land. Moving the embassy was a bad idea, because it led to international backlash, and Trump has already had a long history of bad decision-making.
ReplyDeleteThe United States shouldn’t be held responsible for dealing with the protests. If anything, Israel could have made a much more firm act on the matter, as they have a more dominant say in this issue. In the same vein, if both Israel and America foreshadowed protests by the Palestinians, then they should have reached out to the Palestinians about this issue as well. Yet, at the same time, depending on how the US and Israel explain their new move, protests can be avoided. Therefore, the major issue at hand is pacifying the Palestinians. The US and Israel must do so by putting out some press release to better relieve tensions. A peace summit or some kind of meeting would be the next step in the future.
ReplyDeleteThe United States should be partially responsible for the protest because they want to help the Middle East but, they still continue to create conflict between the different religions and what the people want. They should move back the embassy where it was so that the Palestinians won't create more tension. Palestinians will get more mad because they want support from the countries around Israel to help Palestine. Moving the embassy was not a good idea because it will create more conflict in Israel. There will be more protest for recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's capital.
ReplyDeleteIn the past, the US has tried to help negotiate possible solutions of partitioning Jerusalem into East Jerusalem and West Jerusalem in an attempt to broker peace between Israelis and Palestinians. However, Trump’s decision has pretty much shut down this possibility. Trump claims that this decision was “a long-overdue step to advance the peace process and to work towards a lasting agreement,” but in reality it did nothing more than demonstrate his alliance with Israel. In fact, it is doing the exact opposite by taking away what Palestinians want the most. Palestinians have had so much taken away from them by the international community that at this point many have nothing to lose. At the least, Trump’s decision will cause more frequent attacks against Israel by Hamas and other Palestinian terrorist groups, but an all-out war between Israelis and Palestinians may be imminent.
ReplyDeleteI think that ultimately, this move is symbolic and had no other purpose but for Trump to assert his own beliefs, It encourages violence between israelis and palestinians. two groups which already have decades of built up tension. Due to them causing it, the US should take responsibility and mediate the protests themselves. Ultimately, the move of the embassy was a bad idea and has only negative consequences for an unstable region
ReplyDeleteThe US should take some, but not full responsibility for the protests. The protests are partially caused because of the US since the protests started when the US decided on moving the embassy. There was already tension before the move, but the move increased tension a lot, so the US is partially to blame. The move was not a good idea because it is just increasing violence and death. Even if the US takes some of the blame for the protests, I am unsure of how the US would deal with them. Moving the embassy shows that the US has chosen a side, so we are less of a mediator.
ReplyDeleteLike stated above, I do not believe the US should take full responsibility for the protests; however, they are not taking action and repenting for their wrongful actions in recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's capital and therefore neglecting the Palestinians. Ultimately, the concern regarding Jerusalem's rightful place is not theirs to call although they can have some input as to who they side with. They are supposed to be mediators in this Palestine-Israel conflict, yet Trump has caused more disturbance over the past few months and has not fixed his mistakes. The embassy should absolutely be moved back to its original spot as tensions continue to increase.
ReplyDeleteI also think that the US moving the embassy was a bad idea. I think the US is involving themselves in a situation that does not pertain to them. If the government continues to carry out actions that deal with the problem, we could have to start dealing with more international issues. The rest of the world is watching the decisions the US is makes, and if other countries are angered by the way the country is handling the situation, they could join forces with Palestine and cause an even bigger problem for the US. Additionally, I do not think it is fair for the Palestinians. The US is one of the strongest countries in the world, and for Israel to have the backing of the US can come as a huge blow to Palestine. I don't see the reason for the US to cause more issues in a situation that does not pertain to them. If the US wanted to help solve the conflict, there are so many other ways to deal with the situation rather than pick and choosing sides. The US needs to back off now if they do not want to cause more problems.
ReplyDeleteYes, the US is mostly responsible for the protests. They made the decision to move the embassy, knowing fully well that it might have repercussions. However, Trump is never one to thoroughly consider repercussions, and only thought of how this would benefit, in his opinion, US-Israeli relations. Although we're responsible, instead of pouring in troops to escalate the conflict, our aid should constitute of a financial component and advisory component. We need to fix our egregious error in moving the embassy, and move it back to Tel Aviv, or somewhere else more neutral for Palestinians and Israelis. The US has a reputation for sticking our noses where they don't belong, so we need to just fix our mistake, peacefully provide aid, and leave Israel and Palestine to figure out the matters concerning Israel and Palestine.
ReplyDeleteThe US moving its embassy could cause significant harm to the U.S. credibility as a mediator for peace talks between Israelis and Palestinians. Moving of the embassy could undermine confidence from Palestinians and Arab countries that the U.S. would remain an impartial negotiator in efforts to create peace in the Middle East.
ReplyDeleteI think that the U.S. should definitely be somewhat responsible for dealing with the protests, because the U.S. chose to move the embassy, so they should help the citizens deal with protests. The protests that have been taking place have been violent, resulting in the deaths of many. The U.S. should help manage the protests in an attempt to prevent these deaths and injuries. I am not sure if moving the embassy was a good idea because, as previously mentioned, the U.S. has shown that it is on Israel's side more than it is on Palestine's side. This means that Palestine may begin to lose its trust in the U.S. If Israel begins to form relationships with nearby countries, the Palestinians would likely face more violence and suffering if they continued to protest.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/14/world/middleeast/gaza-protests-palestinians-us-embassy.html
The US should be held accountable and should be responsible. It's a bold move to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital (in my opinion). Moving the embassy was extra and made Palestinians upset, obviously. I personally don't believe the US should even be involved in this matter. They shouldn't get themselves involved. If they want to be involved then they better mediate a little better. They could manage the protests or at least try to contain them.
ReplyDeletei believe that the United Sates moving the embassy was a bad idea. It shows the arab state the clear relationship between the United States and Israel. The evidence is already clear, as we see the protests from the Palestinians. They are outraged that they recognize Jerusalem and have moved their embassy.
ReplyDeleteI don’t think the US is fully responsible for dealing with the protests, the reason is that it is in an Israeli part of Jerusalem, and the Palestinians are protesting the Embassy in the Israeli part of the town. I could understand if the Embassy was opened in a Palestinian part of the town because that would most likely turn into war due to such high tensions already. I feel that if relations grew between Israel and the neighboring countries, the Palestinians might not have a place to go. But If there were major countries that could help intervene and help the Palestinians and Israelis find an agreement that would, I think, help a lot.
ReplyDeleteI think the US bears responsibility for the protests since their decisions/actions are what provoked the protests to happen in the first place. I think the best way to deal with it would be to move the embassy back to where it originally was for the time being until finding another way to deal with things. And by saying another way to deal with things, it could potentially mean finding another way to acknowledge Jerusalem without provoking so much controversy and in a way that wouldn't affect the Palestinians. I don't think moving the embassy was a good idea at all only because this conflict is already on shaky territory and any disturbances to that fragile environment could cause great damage which the two sides are not ready to deal with yet.
ReplyDeleteThe United States has no authority in Israel. The only reason Trump decided to favor them is because Israel in the housing ground for US missiles and the only way for the US to threaten Russia. The moving of the embassy made an impact in the region that was unnecessary. In the past the US had been playing both sides and providing aid to Palestinians but by moving the embassy they ensured the demise of Palestine and just added to the separation of the two peoples. Its ridiculous that the US should have the power to pick one people over the other, especially hen they are on the other side of the world.
ReplyDeleteThe United States is clearly responsible for the protests directly, and therefore should be responsible for dealing with them. Jerusalem is a city of great religious importance to both the Palestinians and the Israelis, and both cultures have some right to claim the area. Therefore, for the US to favor one culture (as they have done by moving the US embassy to Israel to Jerusalem, thereby legitimizing Israel's claim to Jerusalem as their capital) and to do nothing to appease the other side is to incite violence to an extreme degree. What Palestine has seen in terms of deaths over the last few decades at the hands of the Israeli/American "team" far exceeds events that mainland America has experienced. US involvement in the area is childish and self-interested (As Kelsey mentioned: the US supports Israel not because it believes in the Zionist movement, but because we benefit from Israel controlling the land over Palestine). In the end, the US has caused quite a mess. It's easy to say they should be responsible for cleaning it up, but I hesitate to do so because with our current track record, we would probably just make the situation worse.
ReplyDeleteThe United States is definitely responsible for the protests since they moved the embassy to Jerusalem. The United States should be dealing with these riots and protests since they got themselves involved in this ongoing issue. Like Andrew and Kelsey said, the US becoming involved is not because they are worried about the situation in Israel, but because they want the benefits of a relationship with Israel and their control over Palestine. The US is responsible for repairing the damage that has been done because if they had not gotten involved, riots and protests would not be happening.
ReplyDeleteI don't think that the United States is responsible for the protests carried out by the Palestinians, but moving their embassy in the first place was a bad idea considering all the possible retaliations there could be. However, I'd like to point out how disproportionate the reactions from both the Israeli and Palestinians are. Is it really necessary to have snipers to shoot and kill protesters who are speaking out against an action that the US made? And should the Palestinians be overreacting this much to a change that might not do so much damage compared to what the protests have done? If Israel did expand relationships with other Middle Eastern countries, I think Palestine will not just be physically weaker, but also mentally. More protests will break because they feel like they have less support and are more exposed to threats. Overall, I think the moving of the embassy was a horrible and extremely unpremeditated and has caused a mess, but the mess itself should be cleaned up by those who reacted to it wrongly.
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