Israeli ambassador urges move of U.S. embassy

Israel's ambassador to the United States on Tuesday evening forcefully endorsed moving America's embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, saying the controversial diplomatic move would boost the chances of peace in the region.

Ron Dermer, Israel's top diplomat in the United States, made the statement at an Israeli embassy Hanukkah party in Washington. It is a boost to President-elect Donald Trump's administration, which has said moving the embassy to Jerusalem is a top priority. Upon being named as Trump's choice for ambassador to Israel, David Friedman said in a statement that he will "strengthen the unbreakable bond between our two countries and advance the cause of peace within the region, and look forward to doing this from the U.S. embassy in Israel's eternal capital, Jerusalem."

Dermer told the crowd gathered in Israel's embassy in upper Northwest Washington that Israel puts its embassies in countries' capitals and joked that he has said he would move Israel's embassy to New York if the U.S. didn't move its diplomatic headquarters to Jerusalem. He called moving the embassy to Jerusalem a "great step forward to peace," a statement that is hardly widely accepted, especially in the Arab world............

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