The status of Jerusalem: Czech government agrees with King David (not the BBC and The Guardian)
And the capital of Israel is… Jerusalem! The city’s mayor, Nir Barkat, thanks the Czech government for that news. The Czechs have printed all school textbooks to show that Israel’s capital is the ancient city of Jerusalem.
Jerusalem is where the Israeli Knesset (parliament) and government are based.
“Jerusalem is on the map!” says Barkat. “Truth has indeed overcome lies: The Czech government has reversed its decision and Czech textbooks will correctly teach that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel.”
The Palestinian Embassy had complained.
“I’m thankful to the Czech government for making the right choice and for refusing to surrender to Palestinian incitement and lies,” adds Barkat. “I am pleased that my letter to Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka and the additional diplomatic efforts have positively impacted this decision,” Barkat said.
“The friendship between the Czech and Jewish peoples has deep and historical roots. Future generations of Czech students will continue to learn the truth: Jerusalem is Israel’s capital and the heart and soul of the Jewish people.”
True enough. My wife is granddaughter to Jan Smudek (aka Elusive Jan). But the history of the Czechs and the Jews is long and very mixed.
As for Jerusalem’s status, CBC reminds its readers: “King David was the first to declare Jerusalem the capital of the Jewish people 3,000 years ago.”
Almost all countries, including the U.S., consider Jerusalem to be a disputed city and have their embassies in Tel Aviv. Palestinians want the eastern section of the city, commonly referred to as East Jerusalem, for the capital of a future state…
Jerusalem was divided from 1948 to 1967, with Jordan ruling the eastern side of the city, including the Old City, Western Wall, Temple Mount and just about every biblical site. As a result of the 1967 Six-Day War, Israel re-united the city under its sovereignty, and in 1980 officially enshrined in law that Jerusalem is the undivided capital of Israel.
It is a hot topic.
The BBC was confused. It said Israel had no capital at all in its profiles of all nations competing in the London 2012 Games.
In 2014, Collins Bartholomew, a subsidiary of HarperCollins, featured no Israel on maps distributed to English-speaking schools in the Middle East. Why? Because it matched “local preferences”.
The Guardian regretted the error:
The caption on a photograph featuring passengers on a tram in Jerusalem observing a two-minute silence for Yom HaShoah, a day of remembrance for the 6 million Jews who died in the Holocaust, wrongly referred to the city as the Israeli capital. The Guardian style guide states: “Jerusalem is not the capital of Israel; Tel Aviv is” (Eyewitness, 20 April, page 24).
But it is. Isn’t it?
Posted: 9th, September 2016 | In: Reviews Comment | TrackBack | Permalink
