![Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu (3rd R) holds weekly cabinet meeting at the Knesset (Israeli Parliament) in Jerusalem, on January 08, 2023 [Israeli Government Press Office/Anadolu Agency]](https://i0.wp.com/www.middleeastmonitor.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/AA-20230108-29939677-29939676-BENJAMIN_NETANYAHU_HOLDS_WEEKLY_CABINET_MEETING.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1)
Israel’s parliament yesterday approved the first reading of a bill that prevents countries from opening consulates and embassies to serve Palestinians in occupied East Jerusalem.
Channel 7 said the bill would not allow foreign countries to open or operate a consulate or embassy in Jerusalem to serve Palestinians.
Member of the Israeli Knesset, Ze’ev Elkin, said: “The recent trend of various countries of the world to unilaterally recognise the Palestinian state may lead to new initiatives to open foreign consulates in Jerusalem for the Palestinian population, which would express their recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of a future Palestinian state.”
The bill aims, he added, to prevent this possibility to avoid political pressure on the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the State of Israel to approve the establishment of such consulates.
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