Israeli officials were relieved on Tuesday when the European Union passed a resolution merely calling for Israel and the Palestinians to negotiate the division of Jerusalem, rather that recognizing eastern Jerusalem as the capital of "Palestine" even before negotiations have been concluded.
The original wording of the resolution, authored by Sweden, had caused much consternation in Israel over its ground-breaking acceptance of Palestinian and Arab demands without acknowledgement of Israel's positions.
The resolution was also reworded to not refer to the Palestinian Authority as "Palestine."
Under the surface, of course, the new wording is no different than the original, as it predetermines the outcome of Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations by insisting they conclude with the division of Jerusalem, which most Israelis do not accept.
Palestinian leaders praised the resolution as the first step toward the establishment of an Arab Muslim state on the biblical lands of Judea and Samaria with its capital in Jerusalem.
Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat blasted the resolution, and reminded Europe that it had recently celebrated the 20th anniversary of the reunification of Berlin, an event that should have reminded all involved that "no divided city in the history of the world has functioned properly."
source: http://www.israeltoday.co.il/default.aspx?tabid=178&nid=20136
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