EU/ISRAEL/MIDDLE EAST/PALESTINE/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Washington’s allies in Europe and the Middle East criticized the U.S. for opening a new embassy in Jerusalem on Monday [5-14-18] and called on Israel to restrain its forces after dozens of Palestinian protesters were killed in clashes. The episode marked the latest point of discord to emerge between the U.S. and many of its major partners after Washington withdrew from the nuclear deal with Iran last week. The Trump administration defended and celebrated its decision to move the embassy and refused to criticize Israel’s use of force, instead blaming the Palestinian group Hamas for the bloodshed. The political and militant group helped organize the protests, which started several weeks ago to call for the right of refugees to return to what is now Israel. In the violence Monday, Gaza officials said at least 59 protesters were killed and 2,400 injured when Israeli forces opened fire. Israeli officials said they were defending their borders from Hamas, which is using the protests as a pretext to stage an attack into Israel. Many protesters attempted to breach the fence, using explosive devices, firebombs and flaming kites, the Israeli military said. The strongest criticism came from the U.K. and France. Both condemned the violence and expressed their opposition to the embassy opening in statements.”
– Jessica Donati and Farnaz Fassihi, “U.S. Embassy Move, Bloodshed Add to Friction Between U.S. and Allies,” The Wall Street Journal, May 14, 2018 10:21 pm