Israel: No room for US mission for Palestinians in Jerusalem

By TIA GOLDENBERG
Associated Press

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israel has rejected the promised reopening of the main U.S. diplomatic mission for the Palestinians in Jerusalem. Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said late Saturday there was “no room” in the contested city for such an office. The Trump administration shuttered the U.S. Jerusalem consulate, an office that for years served as the de facto embassy to the Palestinians. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has repeatedly pledged to reopen it, a move that Israeli leaders say would challenge its sovereignty over the Israeli-annexed city. The reopening could help mend U.S. ties with the Palestinians ruptured under Trump.