Top Security Official Warns US, Israel of Dire Consequences of Unwise Decision on Embassy Relocation

Shamkhani’s remarks came after Trump announced his decision to move Washington’s embassy from Tel Aviv to al-Quds city on Wednesday.

“Muslim countries unanimously condemn the plot as the violation of the oppressed Palestinians’ right and pursuit of occupation by the Zionist regime,” Shamkhani said.

He reiterated that the Holy al-Quds is an inseparable part of Palestine, and said, “Any decision on the future of Al Quds should be made by its original residents, and no other country can ignore its people’s absolute rights to decide about the Muslim country.”

In anticipation of Trump’s move, 151 members of the UN General Assembly voted last week to adopt a rare resolution that denounced Israel as the “occupying power” of Jerusalem al-Quds, a city that is holy to Muslims, Christians, and Jews alike.

The city has seen heightened tensions since 2015, when the Israeli military introduced restrictions on the entry of Palestinian worshipers into the al-Aqsa Mosque — Islam’s third holiest site.

Over 300 Palestinians have lost their lives at the hands of Israeli soldiers ever since.

Trump announced late on Wednesday that he would relocate the US diplomatic mission in Israel, a decision that the US Congress made in 1995 but all of his successors have deferred ever since.

Israel lays claim to the entirety of al-Quds (Jerusalem) as its capital while Palestinians want its Eastern part as the capital of a future state for themselves.

Palestinian leaders have warned that the potential relocation would fuel strong reaction in the region and deliver a death blow to any prospect of resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Trump’s move which overturns decades of US foreign policy is feared to trigger a fresh wave of unrest in the Middle East.

In a Wednesday night statement, the Iranian Foreign Ministry called the move a “blatant violation of international resolutions,” and warned against a new Palestinian Intifada (uprising).