U.S., UN spar over Jerusalem embassy move

Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley called a Security Council resolution against recent U.S. policy changes on Jerusalem an insult that won’t be forgotten. The 14 other nations on the Security Council supported the measure that would have required UN members to consider Jerusalem a city in dispute between Israel and Palestine, but the United States vetoed it Monday. Egypt and other Arab countries wanted the vote to demonstrate the breadth of global opposition to President Donald Trump’s recent decision to move the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, which many interpreted as acceptance of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. But Haley said Trump “took great care not to prejudge final status negotiations in any way, including the specific boundaries of Israeli sovereignty in Jerusalem.” The Palestinians said after the veto they would seek a resolution with similar demands in the UN General Assembly, where there are no vetoes. But unlike the Security Council, the assembly’s resolutions are not legally binding.