National Council of Young Israel (NCYI) President Eli Dworetsky, Executive Vice President Rabbi Pesach Lerner, and Associate Executive Director Rabbi Bini Maryles today condemned statements that were made during a State Department press briefing on March 28, 2012 regarding the status of Jerusalem. In response to questions from reporters, State Department spokesperson Victoria Nuland repeatedly refused to acknowledge that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel.

“The U.S. State Department’s inexplicable reluctance to acknowledge a basic geographical fact, namely, that the city of Jerusalem is the capital of the State of Israel, defies logic and exposes a serious lack of comprehension on the part of the State Department as to Jerusalem’s status,” said NCYI President Eli Dworetsky. “Instead of standing together with Israel, which is the United States’ friend and strategic ally, the State Department has assumed a position that is absolutely antithetical to Israel’s best interests. The States Department’s diplomatic dance about Jerusalem’s status is disturbing and degrading, and we believe that the Jewish community should stand up and demand that the United States immediately clarify its position and unequivocally state that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel.”

“Despite the assertions made by the State Department, the status of Jerusalem should not be up for discussion and should certainly not be decided in the context of any negotiations,” continued Dworetsky. “Jerusalem has been the heart and soul of the Jewish people for thousands of years, and it is Israel, not the United States or anyone else, which is best positioned to make decisions regarding its future. United Jerusalem has, and always will be, the eternal capital of Israel, and it is about time for the United States to finally give Jerusalem the legitimacy it deserves as the sovereign capital of the State of Israel.”

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