Australia officially recognizes West Jerusalem as Israel’s capital

Australia has officially recognized West Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, but says it won’t relocate their embassy from Tel Aviv until a peace settlement has been achieved. The move signals a reversal of decades of Middle East policy. Making the announcement in Sydney on Saturday, Prime Minister Scott Morrison also said Australia intends to acknowledge Palestine as a state in the future, with East Jerusalem as its capital. Palestinian official Saeb Erekat said that the Australian announcement about West Jerusalem was born of “petty domestic politics.”