WASHINGTON (JTA) — Letters signed by senators and U.S. House of Representatives from both parties urge Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to protect Israelis from International Criminal Court prosecution. The letters, which have strong backing from the prominent Israel lobby AIPAC, note the recent ICC decision to accept “Palestine”… Read more »
Tagged Secretary of State Mike Pompeo
Netanyahu says he and Mike Pompeo talked about annexing the Jordan Valley
JERUSALEM (JTA) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he discussed annexing the Jordan Valley with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo when they met in Portugal, but the State Department has denied the claim. On Thursday, a day after meeting Pompeo in Lisbon, Netanyahu told reporters that they… Read more »
U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem issues travel warning over settlements announcement
JERUSALEM (JTA) — The U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem issued a travel warning for visiting Americans in the aftermath of the U.S. announcement that the government does not consider the establishment of Israeli civilian settlements in the West Bank as illegal. The warning issued Monday said the visiting Americans could… Read more »
Trump administration, in change of US policy, says Israeli settlements aren’t illegal
WASHINGTON (JTA) — The Trump administration will no longer regard West Bank Jewish settlement as illegal, another dramatic change that aligns it with Israel’s right-wing government. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in reviewing the history of U.S. policy on settlements said that since 1978, the United States has regarded… Read more »
Pompeo assures Christian Zionists that Israel permits conversions to Christianity
WASHINGTON (JTA) — Secretary of State Mike Pompeo made a point of reminding a conference of Christian Zionists that Israel permits conversions to Christianity, just weeks after his department reported on the difficulties converts face there. Pompeo, speaking Monday to the annual Washington summit of Christians United For Israel,… Read more »
Mike Pompeo clarifies comments that peace plan could be biased toward Israel
WASHINGTON (JTA) — Secretary of State Mike Pompeo walked back comments he shared with Jewish leaders saying that it was an “inaccurate” perception that the Trump administration’s peace proposal could be seen as one-sided toward Israel. The Washington Post reported Sunday on a recording obtained from an off-the-record meeting last… Read more »
US sends reinforcements to Middle East, warns Iran of ‘unrelenting force’
WASHINGTON (JTA) — The Trump administration is deploying air and sea strike forces to the Middle East in response to what it described as “troubling and escalatory indications and warnings” from Iran. It’s not clear what Iranian escalations National Security Adviser John Bolton was referring to Sunday evening in… Read more »
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to visit Israel ahead of elections
(JTA) — Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will visit Israel this month with the country in the throes of an election campaign. Pompeo will be in Israel on March 20 for a summit involving Israel, Greece and Cyprus, Axios reported. State Department spokesman Robert Palladino told reporters that Pompeo’s… Read more »
U.S. exit from Syria does not end cooperation in the region, Pompeo tells Netanyahu
(JTA) — The United States’ withdrawal of some 2,000 ground troops from Syria does not signal the end of the U.S. commitment to Israel’s security, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said. Pompeo made the statement Tuesday at the start of a meeting in Brazil with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin… Read more »
Trump and his foreign policy team are on separate pages. What does it mean for Israel and Iran?
WASHINGTON (JTA) — President Donald Trump says he’s ready to meet Iran’s leadership without preconditions. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo seems to have preconditions. The disconnect of recent weeks was sharpened Monday when the White House announced the reimposition of sanctions on Iran, the first to be reintroduced since… Read more »