Palestinian Legislators Bundled Out of Israeli Parliament for Protesting Mike Pence

More than a dozen Palestinian members of Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, were ejected from the chamber for protesting a speech by Vice President Mike Pence on Monday.

The legislators, who represent Palestinians living inside Israel’s pre-1967 borders, stood at the start of Pence’s address and held up signs with the slogan “Jerusalem is the capital of Palestine” over an image of a mosque and a church in the city. The placards signaled dissent from the Trump administration’s decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and move the U.S. embassy there next year, despite international consensus that the Israeli annexation of East Jerusalem in 1967 was illegal.

Muslim Group Recognizes East Jerusalem as Palestinian Capital

The Organization of the Islamic Conference, a regular meeting of the foreign ministers of 57 Muslim-majority countries, held an extraordinary session in Istanbul on Wednesday, in which they rejected US President Donald Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. In a communique they called Trump’s decision “unilateral,” “illegal,” and “irresponsible” and said it was “null and void.”

EU's Federica Mogherini rebuffs Netanyahu on Jerusalem

The EU's foreign policy chief says there is "full EU unity" in support of Jerusalem becoming the capital of both Israel and a future Palestinian state.

Federica Mogherini said the bloc's member states would not recognise the city as Israel's capital before a final status peace agreement.

She spoke after meeting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who wants the EU to follow the US in doing so.

President Donald Trump's move prompted widespread international criticism.

Erdogan: Jerusalem status a red line for Muslims

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has threatened to cut diplomatic ties with Israel over reports that the United States plans to recognise Jerusalem as the Israeli capital.

Such a move would be a "red line" for Muslims, Erdogan said on Tuesday.

Reports emerged on Friday that US President Donald Trump was considering recognising Jerusalem as Israel's capital, a move that would be symbolised by relocating the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, upsetting decades of US policy.

Jerusalem: Israeli policemen killed in shooting attack

Two Israeli policemen died after Palestinian gunmen reportedly opened fire near al-Aqsa compound in Jerusalem's Old City, before they too were killed in a gunfight.

Israeli police said the three gunmen reached one of the gates near the al-Aqsa compound, opened fire and fled towards al-Aqsa Mosque where they were shot dead by police officers on Friday.

What Is Fueling Rising Tensions In Jerusalem?

Tensions in Jerusalem have been boiling for months. In July, Palestinian teenager Mohammed Abu Khdeir was burned to death in the city in revenge for the killing of three Israeli teens in the West Bank. Soon after, war broke out between Israeli forces and Hamas militants in the Palestinian Gaza Strip, fueling more protests in Jerusalem. In recent weeks, the attempt to assassinate a controversial Jewish activist and deadly driving attacks on Israelis have heightened the city's unease.

UN Chief Demands Israel Scrap East Jerusalem Settlement Plan

JERUSALEM, Oct 13 (Reuters) - U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called on Israel on Monday to scrap plans to expand settlements in East Jerusalem, which Palestinians want as the capital of a future state, and urged both sides to return rapidly to peace talks.

Israel captured the West Bank, Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem in the 1967 Middle East War and annexed the city's eastern half in a move not recognized internationally. Palestinians seek to establish statehood in the three territories, while Israel considers Jerusalem its eternal and indivisible capital.

East Jerusalem Settlement Plan Clears Hurdle, Threatens Peace Process

JERUSALEM -- A plan for settling thousands more Jews in a strategic part of Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem has quietly cleared a key bureaucratic hurdle, threatening to cut a link between Jerusalem and the West Bank and endanger already slim peace prospects.

The proposed Givat Hamatos development would complete a Jewish band around a part of east Jerusalem, the Palestinians' hoped-for capital, complicating any future partition of the city.

"This is a game changer," Daniel Seidemann, a Jerusalem expert, said of Givat Hamatos. While relatively small in size, "this is a mega-settlement in terms of impact," he added.

The plan calls for about 2,600 apartments, including about 1,800 for Givat Hamatos and 800 for an expansion of Beit Safafa, an adjacent Palestinian neighborhood, Seidemann said. Construction could begin by the second half of 2012, he said.