Donald Trump's Jerusalem Failure.

Yesterday (6/12/17) US President Donald Trump announced that he would be moving the US Embassy in Israel to the city of Jerusalem. This move recognises Jerusalem as the capital city of Israel.

With Jerusalem being possibly the most hotly contested city on Earth it is hard to find words to describe just how reckless and idiotic Trump's announcement was.

Within Jerusalem there is located the Mount of God's Holy House. In Hebrew this translates as; "Har HaBayit." In Arabic it translates as; "Haram ash-Sharif." In either language though the meaning is the same.

Jews believe that this site is where the Temple of Solomon once stood. This is the first Temple, Church or Mosque dedicated to God.

It is believed that the Temple of Solomon was built on the mountain where God asked Abraham to sacrifice his son Issac to prove his loyalty. This story from the book of Genesis is known as; "The Binding of Issac" and celebrated by Muslims as; "The Feast of Sacrifice/Eid al-Adha."

It is believed that the Temple of Solomon was built using the; "Foundation Stone." This is the piece of rock from which God created Earth and all life upon it.

It is also believed that the Temple of Solomon was built to house the; "Ark of the Covenant" - the chest which houses the two stone tablets of the' "Ten Commandments" handed down by God to Moses in the book of Exodus.

As such the Mount of God's Holy House is the most important site in the Jewish religion.

Christians believe the same God as Jews and worship the same sacred texts although they have added to them. As such the Mount of God's Holy House is equally important to Christians.

The site has added significance because it is just north of the little town of Bethlehem where Jesus Christ whom Christians believe to be the son of God. It is also believed to be the site where Jesus Christ was executed and rose from the dead.

Christians believe this ultimate sacrifice and resurrection forgives them their sins. It is the most significant event within the Christian religion and celebrated as; "Easter."

Muslims believe in the same God as Jews and Christians and worship the same sacred texts although they have added to them. As such the Mount of God's Holy House is just as important to Muslims as it is to Jews and Christians.

The only difference is where Christians believe that Jesus Christ was the son of God Muslims believe him to be one of God's prophets like Moses and Abraham.

Further increasing the claim to the Mount of God's Holy House Muslims also believe that it is the site where Muhammad - God's most important prophet - ascended into Heaven.

The Mount of God's Holy House is currently under the control of a Jordanian Islamic Trust of; "Waqf." They have banned Jews and Christians from praying at the site.

Muslim's main concern is that Jews will one day seize control of the Mount of God's Holy House and ban Muslims and Christians from praying there.

There is also no doubt some Christians who want to seize control of the site and ban Jews and Muslims from praying there. Although they're so small in number everyone tends to forget about them.

The US recognising Jerusalem as the capital city of Israel as a Jewish state very much raises concerns that Muslims and Christians will be excluded from praying at the Mount of God's Holy House.

Donald Trump's decision though also has very serious implications for everybody across the World as we know it. Not just the followers of the three Abrahamic religions of Judaism, Christianity and Islam.

On June 28th 2914 (28/6/14) Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria was assassinated in Sarajevo which is now the largest city in Bosnia & Herzegovina. The Austro-Hungarian Empire, the German Empire, the Russian Empire and the Turkish Ottoman Empire saw this as an opportunity to expand their Empires.

The result was four years of war in which 16 million people were killed. The First World War as it became known resulted only in the destruction of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the German Empire, the Russian Empire and the Turkish Ottoman Empire.

In 1938 Adolf Hitler decided that he was going to rebuild the German Empire. The result was six years of war in which 50 million were killed. This includes 11 million civilians who were exterminated simply because of their religion/ethnicity or some other aspect which made them inferior such as disability or homosexuality.

At the end of what became known as the Second World War the World gathered to say; "Never Again."

The United Nations (UN) was formed. The second article of the first chapter of the UN Charter reads;

"All Members shall refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state.."

This established a new international law. The days of Empire were over. No more could a nation seize the territory of another nation through the use of force.

Of the 11 million exterminated during the Second World War 5 million were Jews. So from the ashes of that war the World also established a permanent safe-haven for the Jewish people - the nation state of Israel.

This was done by the partitioning of the British colony of Palestine into two nations. One the nation of Israel and the other the nation of Palestine.
 
I think obtaining the consent of Britain as the colonial power to do this was dubious in this new world order. However it was also supposed to mark the end of the British Empire giving the people of Israel and Palestine the right to nationhood and self-determination for the first time. 

Under the UN partion plan - UN Resolution 181 (1947) - Jerusalem was given; "Corpus Separatum/Separated Body" status. This meant that it was neither part of Israel nor part of Palestine. Instead it along with the Mount of God's Holy House would be administrated by the international community under the auspices of the UN.

In 1967 Israel waged the Six Day War with it's Arab neighbours. This saw Israel militarily seize large sections of Palestinian and Syrian territory including parts of the Golan Heights and the city of Jerusalem.

In the years since Israel has attempted to turn those areas of Syrian and Palestinian territory into Israeli territory by building wholly illegal Israeli settlements on them. The city of Jerusalem is the symbolic heart of this Israeli expansion effort.

By recognising Jerusalem as the legitimate capital of Israel the US is announcing its withdrawal from the second article of the first chapter of the UN Charter. It is saying that international law now longer exists and nations are free to go back to use force to seize the territory of their neighbours.

Trump's reckless announcement comes at a time when that law has never been more important.

To the north of Israel and Syria you have the Turkish President/Prime Minister/Emperor Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

As with Adolf Hitler before him Erdogan has decided that he wishes to restore the Ottoman Empire to the glory it enjoyed before the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand.

In going about this Erdogan has followed Hitler's 1938 invasion of Czechoslovakia almost to the letter.

Erdogan has backed Islamist groups such as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and Al Qaeda to spread terror across both countries. This has allowed him to send regular Turkish military units to invade and occupy particularly parts of Syria under the guise of protecting civilians from the terror he has created.

By saying that Israel is right to invade and occupy Jerusalem Trump is also saying that it is acceptable for Erdogan to go ahead with his plan to re-establish the Ottoman Empire. If you are familiar with the Ottoman Empire you would know that is extremely bad news for Israel's security.

Since the UN partion in 1948 the world has worked to achieve a lasting peace between the two states of Israel and Palestine. As Trump's predecessor Barack Obama never seemed to grasp the rise of groups like ISIL and Al Qaeda in the conflict in Syria makes that effort near impossible.

In northern Iraq you have the city of Mosul. This is traditionally a mixed city which is home to both Sunni and Shia Muslims whose religion forbids them from drinking alcohol. However is also home to many Yezidis and Christians whose religion does permit them to drink alcohol. The Christian religion actually requires it.

Prior to the city being seized by ISIL Mosul's Muslims were happy to respect that the Yezidi and Christian's religion allowed them to drink alcohol and there were many shops selling it. Even though the city has been liberated from ISIL many of those shops have come under attack from the city's Muslim population.

It as if they feel that in order to counter the influence of ISIL they have to prove just how Muslim they are. This has led to something of a violent competition to see who can be the most Muslim which has spread across the entire region.

Much of the western world has become increasingly concerned by ISIL propaganda calling for lone-wolf supporters to carry out low-tech terror attacks using knives or cars.

While this has been going on from 2015 onwards Israel has been experiencing what has been dubbed; "The Intifada of the Knife."

This has seen it experience a massive increase in low-tech terror attacks being carried out by lone-wolves using knives and cars. The overwhelming majority of the perpetrators have been Palestinian Muslims from the West Bank. The majority of the attacks have occurred in and around Jerusalem.

If we believe that non-Arabic speaking Muslims in nations such as Britain and the US can be inspired by ISIL propaganda then surely we must believe that it can inspire Arabic speaking Muslims in the nation which directly borders Syria.

Erdogan in particular has seemed very keen to fuel the Intifada of the Knife. Frequently choosing the Mount of God's Holy House and false claims of plans to close the al-Aqsa Mosque on the site to incite violence.

Accompanied by a Turkish language social media hashtag Trump's announcement almost seems intended to boost Erdogan's standing as leader of the Muslim world.

To Israel's south-west you have Egypt's Sinai Peninsula. As you may have noticed from November 24th's (24/11/17) horrific bombing of a Mosque Egypt's Sinai Peninsula is being increasingly threatened by an ISIL affiliate now calling themselves; "ISIL's Sinai Province."

This group is much more familiar to people by their original name; "Ansar Bait al-Maqdis (ABM)" or "Defenders of the Holy House" by which they mean the Mount of God's Holy House in Jerusalem.

Despite the extreme pressures placed upon it by the rise of ISIL and their associates this past year has seen significant progress in efforts to bring peace between the two states of Israel and Palestine.

This is largely the dividend of no longer having Barack Obama around to interfere.

The most significant progress has come from the Palestinian group Hamas who are primarily based in the Gaza area of Palestine which directly borders Egypt's Sinai Peninsula.

In the past year Hamas have ended their relationship with the Muslim Brotherhood - the organisation from which they were formed. The Muslim Brotherhood is the organisation which links ISIL and their Sinai Province to Turkey, Erdogan and Qatar.

Hamas have also recognised Palestine within the borders of UN Resolution 181 (1947). Although they have given up claim to areas outside of those borders Hamas have not yet recognised the nation state of Israel.

However getting a Palestinian group to recognise the state of Israel and all that entails is a bit like getting an Israeli Prime Minister to say that he doesn't want Jerusalem recognised as Israel's capital.

With the US announcing that the Mount of God's Holy House in Jerusalem is under threat like never before I think it will be extremely difficult for Hamas to maintain that newly moderated position. Particularly with the self-proclaimed defenders of that Holy House challenging them both for supporters and supply lines.

In making his announcement it is clear that Donald Trump has not considered any of this. Instead he has only considered his own domestic support within America.

As you may have noticed President Trump is under extreme pressure with things like the Mueller investigation into supposed ties with Russia. However this is just a small part of a much wider effort to oust him from office.

This effort has been marked by intense hostility towards Trump from what is considered the US' mainstream media. A prime example of this is the problems restoring the electricity supply to the US territory of Puerto Rico following Hurricanes Irma & Maria.

The main problem is that the Democrats who run Puerto Rico gave the contract to repair the electrical grid to a company called; "Whitefish Energy." With only two employees it's clear that Whitefish Energy were not equipped to carry out the task.

That Whitefish Energy had been awarded the Puerto Rico contract was considered a major scandal which was being reported on internationally even before Hurricane Irma struck. However the US media - particularly CNN - refused to report on it until they discovered that Whitefish Energy were based in the same state as Trump appointed Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke.

It was only then the US news media felt safe to run the story. They believed that they could blame the awarding to the contract to Trump even though Secretary Zinke or any other member of the Federal government had anything to do with Puerto Rico's Democrats decision to award the contract to Whitefish Energy.

This is just one example of what appears to be a rule in the US news media. They can only run a story if they can first find a way to make sure that story damages Trump.

Faced with this just relentless criticism Trump has done what politicians often do - try and sure up their core support. One of Trump's core groups of supporters is America's Evangelical Christians.

Trump's relationship with the Evangelical Christians has been particularly strained of late by the race to replace Jeff Sessions in an Alabama Senate seat.

In this race Trump initially backed Luther Strange in the Republican primary. However Strange lost to Roy Moore because Moore is an Evangelical Christian and a lot of Republican voters in Alabama are also Evangelical Christians.

As the Senate race has heated up Roy Moore has faced allegations of child abuse. As the main accuser  Deborah Wesson Gibson is employed by the Democrat Party working as sign language translator for both Hillary Clinton and John Kerry I do not put much faith in the credibility in these allegations.

However the entire Republican Party seems to have abandoned Roy Moore with even the leader of the Congressional Republicans Mitch McConnell saying that even if elected he will prevent Moore from taking up his seat. Alabama voters don't seem to have abandoned Moore though with him still leading in the polls.

America's Evangelical Christians view Jerusalem as almost a mythical place like Shangri-La or Nirvana rather than a real place where real people really live. They wish to see Jerusalem restored the capital of the Jewish state in order to fulfil a religious prophecy.

Unfortunately this prophecy is that once Jerusalem is restored as the capital of the Jewish state it will trigger the arrival of God's final messenger to Earth. That messenger will then lead the righteous in a final apocalyptic battle against the evildoers.

This is the same religious prophecy that ISIL subscibe to. So mainstream Christians frequently try to distance themselves from American Evangelicals in much the same way mainstream Muslims try to distance themselves from ISIL.

The only good thing I can say about Trump's announcement is that it is not as dramatic as it first sounds.

The US actually recognised Jerusalem as the capital city of Israel back in 1995 under President Bill Clinton. It has then repeatedly suspended that decision by signing a bi-monthly waiver.

Immediately after giving the speech making his announcement President Trump then signed that waiver once again.

So aside from inciting a lot of hostility and aggression Trump's announcement doesn't actually do anything.

Which makes the decision to incite all that hostility and aggression even more bizarre.

17:55 on 7/12/17 (UK date).