President Donald Trump’s decision to move the U.S. Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem has brought an unexpected reward.
Plans are underway to expand Jerusalem’s future high-speed rail line to the Western Wall, and one of the stations might be named after the U.S. president, Fox News reported.
(AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Israel’s transportation minister is reportedly moving forward with the expansion plans for the soon-to-be-opened high-speed rail, as two underground stations will be constructed involving the excavating of over two miles of tunnel beneath downtown Jerusalem.
“The Western Wall is the holiest place for the Jewish people, and I decided to call the train station that leads to it after President Trump following his historic and brave decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of the State of Israel,” Yisrael Katz told the Jerusalem Post on Wednesday.
Trump made history as the first sitting U.S. president to visit the Western Wallwhen he visited the site this spring.
President Trump becomes the first sitting U.S. president to visit the Western Wall; places note inside the wall. https://t.co/n7TqA3VDnW pic.twitter.com/Gs0h9ad5EK
— ABC News (@ABC) May 22, 2017
Earlier this month, Trump announced that the United States would recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, moving the U.S. embassy in a decision that was praised by supporters and condemned by critics. Much of the Muslim world joined Palestinians in denouncing the decision which the United Nations called “null and void.”
BREAKING: UN General Assembly votes 128-9 to declare US recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital `null and void’
— The Associated Press (@AP) December 21, 2017
“America will put our embassy in Jerusalem,” UN Ambassador Nikki Haley responded in defiant statement. “No vote in the United Nations will make any difference on that. But this vote will make a difference on how Americans look at the UN, and on how we look at countries who disrespect us in the UN.”
The Western Wall train expansion will likely be up against staunch opposition from those who do not recognize Israel’s sovereignty over east Jerusalem and the Old City. If approved, the plan to extend the rail line would take four years to complete at a cost of more than $700 million, according to Fox News.
Via BizPAC
