The United States will allow Americans born in Jerusalem to list Israel as their place of birth on passports and other documents, according to a new policy announced Thursday.
The move came a day after the United States amended science accords signed with Israel to apply to institutions in Judea and Samaria. The changes, enacted days before the US election, appeared to be aimed at shoring up the support of evangelical Christians and other Israel backers.
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President Donald Trump's administration broke with decades of US policy by recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's capital in 2017 and later moving the embassy there from Tel Aviv, where most other countries maintain their missions.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a statement that the new passport policy was in keeping with the decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital. Jerusalem-born Americans will be able to specify either "Israel" or "Jerusalem" as their place of birth on passports and official documents.
Those who do not specify their place of birth will be listed as having been born in Jerusalem.
Nabil Abu Rudeineh, the spokesman for Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, condemned the move, calling it a "flagrant violation of international law."
Trump has taken a series of unprecedented steps to support Israel, which the Palestinians decry as at their expense.
The administration has succeeded, however, in improving ties between Israel and other Arab nations. In recent weeks the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Sudan have agreed to normalize relations with Israel, giving Trump a string of foreign policy achievements ahead of the vote.
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