Experts call for international leadership on Jerusalem

Diplomats and international journalists gathered in Ankara for a panel discussion on Jerusalem following the United States' unilateral decision to accept it as Israel's capital.

Turkey’s Directorate General of Press and Information organised the event, where the speakers discussed a possible fallout with the US over its recent move.

Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Hakan Cavusoglu and Palestine's ambassador to Turkey were also on the panel. 

Italian war correspondent Francesca Borri who has conducted many studies on the Israel-Palestine conflict, Russian journalist Maxim Leonarovich Shevchenko, who has written many articles on the issue and Bosnian journalist, and political analyst Mirnes Kovac, recipient of five awards at the Cannes Lion 2017 Festival, shared their opinions.

Palestine's ambassador to Turkey Faed Mustafa delivered the opening speech at the conference. He thanked Turkey for its support for Palestine. Mustafa talked about the Balfour Declaration which paved the way for the occupation of Palestine. He said that Palestinians are continuing to defend their land.

Deputy Prime Minister Hakan Cavusoglu mentioned the importance of Jerusalem for the three Abrahamic religions. He criticised the US, saying the Jerusalem decision will increase tensions across the region. Cavusoglu also mentioned the efforts of Turkish President Erdogan.

Italian war journalist Borri talked about the difficulties which Palestinians have faced until now and criticised the Israeli administration. She spoke about one of her memories from Israel.

"When I went to Israel, they didn't let me get in Jerusalem. Because they thought I am Muslim and Arab. This is unacceptable. When we want to raise these problems, the West is telling us to be balanced. They are saying if you write one thing good for Palestine, write a good thing for Israel. But this is not just. If there is no balance on the field, we can not try to create a balance on the table."

The Russian journalist mentioned the approach of the Russian people. He said some people are supporting the Israelis, while others support the Palestinians. But he said that this is about democracy. He said that the Palestinians cannot return back to their birthplaces because the Israelis are saying that the land has been promised for them.

Bosnian journalist Kovac said they are sharing the same destiny with Jerusalem. Sarajevo is a Jerusalem for Europe. Problems began when the Ottomans left their soil.

The speakers emphasized the importance of a UN decision that rejected Trump’s acceptance of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

"It is really important to bring peace to the region. Because of that, regional countries should do more. Turkey as a regional power should focus on the solution. Because the US involved many times for the regional problems but they only set the fires," said Shevchenko.

He defined Israel as the gendarmerie of the US in the region and Saudi Arabia as the money supplier.

"Turkey and Russia and some other countries should speak louder. The World is not only the US. There are many other countries," he said.

Trump’s Jerusalem decision

US President Donald Trump announced on December 7 that the US recognises Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and will move its embassy there, breaking with longtime US policy and likely stirring unrest.

The member states of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on December 13 accused Israel of staging provocative actions and inflaming tensions with the Palestinians in a crisis over security measures at Al Aqsa Mosque compound in occupied East Jerusalem.

Turkey hosted an extraordinary meeting in Istanbul of foreign ministers from the OIC that Ankara called to discuss the tensions in its current capacity as chairman of the body.

The meeting brought together foreign ministers and top officials from Muslim-majority nations, including Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir and his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif.

More than 120 countries defied President Donald Trump on December 21 and voted in favour of a United Nations General Assembly resolution calling on the United States to drop its recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.

Trump had threatened to cut off financial aid to countries that voted in favour. A total of 128 countries backed the resolution, which is non-binding, nine voted against and 35 abstained. Twenty-one countries did not cast a vote.