U.S. President Donald Trump announced last week that he would recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. The move, long sought by Israelis, prompted celebrations in their country and among their supporters in the United States. Palestinians and their backers were dismayed, while the rest of the world anticipated violence. While Trump's decision is a symbolic victory for Israelis, that does not make it a wise move, tactically or strategically.
The city of Jerusalem is home to sacred sites of the world's three Abrahamic religions — Christianity, Judaism and Islam — and has been declared "a sacred trust of civilization." Israelis claim the city is the capital of their state, which the Israeli Cabinet confirmed in December 1949; Palestinians claim East Jerusalem as capital of their state, and adherents of all three religions demand access to sites sacred to their faith.
Israel could make good on its claim after the 1967 Six-Day War, when it captured the entire city (it had previously held just the western half). Palestinians could not. After a 1980 Israeli law declared that a "complete and unified" Jerusalem was the capital of Israel, the rest of the world feared that recognition of that position would permanently disenfranchise Palestinians and cripple the peace process. As a result, no country has its embassy in Jerusalem.