15 December 2017•Update: 16 December 2017
By Laith al-Juneidi
AMMAN, Jordan
Thousands of Jordanians took to the streets after Friday prayers, marching through capital Amman to protest U.S. President Donald Trump’s recent decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
Demonstrators also hailed Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's robust stance against the U.S. move, shouting, "Recep Tayyip Erdogan, we send our best wishes from Amman".
Speaking to Anadolu Agency, one demonstrator said that Jordanians "acknowledge President Erdogan's important role in supporting Jerusalem and rejecting Trump's unjust decision".
Some marchers raised banners reading "The [1917] Balfour Declaration may have succeeded, but the Trump Declaration will fail!".
Palestine was seized by Britain following the collapse of the Ottoman Empire early last century, after which Arthur James Balfour, Britain’s then foreign minister, gifted it to the "Jewish people".
Hundreds of demonstrators, including several prominent political figures, marched from the Al-Husseini Mosque to downtown Amman’s Al-Nakhil Square.
Last Wednesday, Trump announced his decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital, and move the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to the holy city. The dramatic shift in U.S. policy drew a storm of condemnation and protest across the Arab and Muslim world.
Jerusalem remains at the heart of the Israel-Palestine conflict, with Palestinians hoping that East Jerusalem -- now occupied by Israel -- might eventually serve as the capital of a Palestinian state.
At a Tuesday summit in Istanbul, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation responded to the controversial U.S. move by formally recognizing East Jerusalem as the capital of Palestine.
In April, Russia recognized West Jerusalem as Israel's capital, voicing hope that the city's eastern half might eventually serve as the capital of an independent Palestinian state.
Trump, in his announcement last week, said that the "specific boundaries of Israeli sovereignty in Jerusalem" should be decided in final-status talks between the two sides.
