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Why Trump Is Right in Recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's Capital
(The Hill) Alan M. Dershowitz - President Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital is a perfect response to President Obama's decision to change American policy by engineering the UN Security Council resolution declaring Judaism's holiest places in Jerusalem to be occupied territory, handing the Palestinians enormous leverage in future negotiations and disincentivizing them from making a compromised peace. The Security Council resolution changed the status quo by declaring Israel's presence at Jewish holy sites to be a "flagrant violation under international law." President Trump's decision to officially recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital helps to restore the appropriate balance. Since virtually everyone in the international community acknowledges that any reasonable peace would recognize Israel's legitimate claims in Jerusalem, there is no reason for allowing the UN resolution to make criminals out of every Jew or Israeli who sets foot in these historically Jewish areas. President Trump was right to undo the damage wrought by his predecessor. The writer is professor of law, emeritus, at Harvard Law School.