Israeli minister criticizes Trump, expects more settlements
JERUSALEM — A top Israeli minister close to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed rare criticism of President Donald Trump on Monday and said he expects the government to approve more construction in West Bank Jewish settlements next week.
Minister of Jerusalem Affairs Zeev Elkin said he is “disappointed” that Trump hasn’t fulfilled his campaign promise to move the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, a decision that the Palestinians fiercely oppose.
“There were very clear election promises, not to the state of Israel but to the American voter, of moving the embassy and I very much regret the delay,” Elkin told Army Radio.
Israel considers Jerusalem, home to holy sites sacred to Jews, Muslims and Christians, as its capital. Palestinians demand east Jerusalem for the capital of their future state, along with the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Israel captured the territories in the 1967 Mideast war, though it withdrew from Gaza in 2005.