The planned change to remove Jerusalem as the capital of Israel from Czech atlases will not occur as planned. The Czech Ministry of Education was planning to do just that, rewrite events and teach children that Tel Aviv is the capital of Israel, not Jerusalem by making the change in atlases. The planned move was in response to a complaint filed by the Palestinian ambassador in Prague.

Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat on Sunday wrote a letter to Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka calling on him to revoke the decision. In light of objections, the ministry has decided to retract the decision and leave the nation’s atlas as it is, portraying Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.

Following are Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat’s comments in the wake of the Czech decision to maintain Jerusalem’s status as the capital of Israel in Czech schoolbooks:

“Jerusalem is on the map!

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.

I’m thankful to the Czech government for making the right choice and for refusing to surrender to Palestinian incitement and lies. I am pleased that my letter to Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka and the additional diplomatic efforts have positively impacted this decision.

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.”

In truth, the Czech move was simply acting on what the international community believes and observes. The best example might be taken from the United States, which continues to ignore a decision to relocate its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem to avoid confrontation with the PA (Palestinian Authority) and its supporters worldwide. As is well known, an American citizen giving birth in a Jerusalem hospital will not find “Israel” written under “place of birth” but rather “Jerusalem”, once again to sidestep the controversy.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)