Palestinian protesters yesterday threw eggs at a US delegation in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and held up signs with anti-American slogans in a bid to prevent them attending an event.
Around 15 protesters confronted a vehicle from the US consulate in Jerusalem as it made its way into Beit Jala, near Bethlehem, and pelted it with eggs, an AFP photographer said. They also held up signs that read: “US government you are not welcome in Palestine”.
Another one read: “Hey Trump, Jerusalem is not the capital of Zion”. The cars then left the area.
In December, US President Donald Trump announced his decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, and last week the United States transferred its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
His move has infuriated Palestinians who consider the eastern part of Jerusalem, annexed by Israel, as the capital of their future state. A US State Department official denounced the protest as “intimidation”, saying the delegation from the US consulate was there to “promote education and cultural exchange with the Palestinian people.”
Palestinian men holding banners sit atop a car carrying members of a US delegation, believed to be from the US consulate in Jerusalem, near an event space in Beit Jala in the occupied West Bank, yesterday.
