Paraguay announced that it too will move its embassy to Jerusalem in May.
Israel’s Foreign Ministry confirmed the move, stating on Tuesday “Paraguayan President Horacio Cartes plans to come to Israel by the end of the month to open an embassy in Jerusalem.” President-elect Mario Abdo Benitez will also attend the opening ceremony towards the end of the month.
Meanwhile, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is currently on a tour in South America in attempts to gain support for the Palestinians amidst growing support for Israel. He stated following a meeting with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro that “We hope that some countries across Latin America won’t go moving their embassies to Jerusalem, because that is against international law,” as part of his efforts to delegitimize the Jewish state.
The United States will open its embassy in Jerusalem on May 14, two days following Honduras. Guatemala relocated its embassy to Jerusalem last week, an official ceremony to be held on May 16. Both Romania and the Czech Republic have confirmed they too will move their embassies to Israel’s capital city.
President Trump will not be present at the embassy opening next week, however several American officials will be present. A US delegation of 300 will attend, alongside Ivanka and Jared Trump, US Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin, Ambassador David Friedman and envoy Jason Greenblatt.
Jerusalem’s Mayor Nir Barkat, who was recently photographed hanging a sign for the US Embassy, took to Twitter stating on the historic event “This is not a dream. It is reality. I am proud and moved to have hung this morning the first new signs that were prepared for the US Embassy.
This article originally appeared on Behold Israel, May 8, 2018, and reposted with permission.