Friedman, a staunch supporter of the Israeli settlement enterprise, told The New York Times that "under certain circumstances, I think Israel has the right to retain some, but unlikely all, of the West Bank."

Asked how the U.S. would respond if Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would make good on a campaign promise to annex parts of Judea and Samaria, Friedman said, "We really don't have a view until we understand how much, on what terms, why does it make sense, why is it good for Israel, why is it good for the region, why does it not create more problems than it solves. These are all things that we'd want to understand, and I don't want to prejudge."

Following Friedman's interview, a U.S. State Department official said the administration's policy on Israeli settlements "has not changed."

Palestinian officials were outraged by the envoy's remark.

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas issued a statement demanding Friedman's dismissal. A similar demand was voiced by the left-wing groups Peace Now and J Street.

The Palestinian Foreign Ministry announced Sunday that Ramallah was considering filing a complaint against Friedman with the International Criminal Court, for "jeopardizing peace and security in the Middle East," citing that under international law, recognizing Israeli sovereignty in the West Bank was illegal.

"Friedman is ignorant in political work and belongs to the state of settlers," Ramallah's Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

"Friedman's remarks are an extension of the U.S. administration's policy, which is fully biased in favor of the occupation and its expansionist colonial policies. The remarks of the settler Friedman expose the truth about him and his ideas, as well as those of his settler peers.

"We are studying whether his racist rhetoric is sufficient to file a complaint against him with the International Criminal Court for trying to impose his racist visions and threatening peace and security in the region, as well as exposing the Palestinian people to several dangers and conspiracies.

"What reasoning could justify Friedman's logic that Israel has the right to annex parts of the West Bank? International law prohibits the annexation of land by force, as well as a reality imposed by occupying powers," the ministry said.

Senior Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said Friedman's remarks proved that U.S. President Donald Trump's administration was heavily biased in favor of Israel and that the Palestinians were justified in choosing to boycott an economic conference in Bahrain later this month where Washington is set to unveil the first phase of a long-delayed peace plan.

Another Palestinian official, Mustafa Barghouti, called Friedman a "spokesman for the settlers" and said his comments amounted to "chutzpah."

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On May 8, 2018, mere days before the U.S. officially inaugurated its new embassy in Jerusalem, the Trump administration withdrew from the Iran nuclear deal. Since then, the U.S. has continued imposing harsh economic sanctions on the regime in Tehran, decimated its economy, forced large corporations to cut business ties with it, rebuffed intensive European efforts to save the Iranian economy, compelled China and India to partake in sanctions, and just last week deployed the U.S. Navy's largest aircraft carrier to the Persian Gulf. And while Trump and officials in his administration have stressed that these measures were implemented to uphold American interests, and not necessarily on behalf of Israel, in their view, Israel's and America's security are one and the same – and this is the crux of the matter.

Not only has the administration completely backed all Israeli military activity in Syria, Gaza and Judea and Samaria, but officials have also made clear that in their view anti-Zionism, Jew-hatred and calls for boycotting Israel all stem from the same phenomenon.

In the words of U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman: "There are places in Manhattan, where I worked for 35 years, where you could attend a cocktail party and if you said, 'I hate Jews,' you would be politely escorted to the door. But if you said 'isn't it a shame that after the Jews survived the Holocaust they turned into Nazis themselves against the Palestinians,' you might be ordered another drink and invited to hold court on your interesting point of view. Unlike other nations, unlike other peoples, there is no political correctness when it comes to Israel and the Jewish people." The Trump administration refuses to accept this double-standard.

On April 12, for the first time, the U.S. Embassy announced visa exemptions for Israeli investors, while on March 26, President Trump made history by recognizing Israel's sovereignty over the Golan. Consequently, the administration and Congress are now including the Golan in joint trade and cooperation initiatives.

On March 4, the U.S. Central Command declared it was deploying the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) anti-ballistic missile defense system in Israel – the most advanced such system in the American arsenal. A day earlier, the U.S. State Department said it was shutting down the independent "Palestinian consulate" on Agron Street in Jerusalem and making it a regular department of the embassy located in the city's Arnona neighborhood.

On February 21, for the second time, Friedman attended and spoke at the Israeli-Palestinian International Economic Forum sponsored by the Judea and Samaria Chamber of Commerce and Industry – yet another step signaling U.S. recognition of the permanence of Israel's presence in there.

A week prior, on February 13-14, the U.S. convened, in large part on Israel's behalf, the 2019 Warsaw Conference, in an effort to highlight and curb Iran's activities in the region. At the conference, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sat alongside Arab leaders.

U.S. Vice President Mike Pence spoke at the conference and declared: "Tonight I believe we are beginning a new era, with Prime Minister Netanyahu from the State of Israel, with leaders from Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE, all breaking bread together, and later in this conference sharing honest perspectives on the challenges facing the area."

On September 1, 2018, the Trump administration announced the complete cessation of American financial support for the U.N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, which perpetuates and exaggerates the Palestinian refugee issue. Ten days later, the administration shuttered the PLO's offices in Washington and on June 20, 2018, the U.S. withdrew from the so-called U.N. "Human Rights Council." The move was spearheaded by then-U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley, who did so simply to object to the body's discrimination against Israel.

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Through its official Wafa news agency, the Palestinian Authority has accused property dealer Issam Akel, a U.S. citizen, of attempting to sell a property in east Jerusalem without permission of his business partners or the authorities. The Wafa report did not identify the intended buyer.

Palestinian law bars selling land to "a hostile state or any of its citizens," and requires the permission of the Palestinian Authority for all land sales in east Jerusalem.

Land sales in the Palestinian territories, including east Jerusalem, are highly fraught for Palestinians, who see Israeli efforts to buy up land as part of a plot to cement control.

"The Palestinian Authority has been holding U.S. citizen Issam Akel in prison for 2 months. His suspected 'crime'? Selling land to a Jew," U.S. Ambassador David Friedman wrote on Twitter.

"Akel's incarceration is antithetical to the values of the U.S. and to all who advocate the cause of peaceful coexistence. We demand his immediate release."

Osama al-Qawasme, an official from Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah movement, rejected Friedman's remarks and called the U.S. envoy "an ambassador of the settlers."

"We deplore his statement that Akel's arrest violated American values. Does building of settlements adhere to American values?" al-Qawasme said. "We in Fatah will confront all attempts to harm the city of Jerusalem or its sacred places."

Akel's father, Jalal, said a Palestinian court had extended his son's detention by 45 days on Monday.

"They are stalling. There is no evidence my son sold anything to Israelis, all charges are void," he said.

Maj. Gen. Adnan Al-Dmairi, a spokesman for the Palestinian security forces, said 20 people had been arrested in recent years on suspicion of violating land laws.

An Israeli security official said Akel was detained on Oct. 10 in Ramallah, the hub city of the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank.

Israel said its security services had appealed to their Palestinian counterparts for Akel's release.

Israel briefly arrested two Palestinian Authority officials from East Jerusalem over the last month on the basis of what the Israeli security official said were suspicions that they had information on Akel's detention.

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Friedman was speaking at The Media Line's Press and Policy Conference at the David Citadel Hotel in Jerusalem – attended by American, Israeli, Palestinian, Egyptian and Druze reporters along with leading politicians – on the burning issues for journalists covering the Middle East.

According to Friedman, the media coverage surrounding the violent Hamas-led demonstrations on the border with Israel in recent weeks was mostly unjust and lacking.

"The conflict in Gaza has dominated the headlines in the last three to four weeks," Friedman told the conference. "There has been lots of criticism of Israel; some of it even legitimate. I think even the State of Israel itself hasn't completed its own internal inquiries as to what happened. Maybe there are some things they could have done better. I'm sure there are always things you can do better."

"With all the criticism Israel has gotten, nobody has identified the less lethal means by which Israel could have defended itself over the last four weeks. If what happened isn't right, what is right?" he asked.

"It seems to me that in this journalistic environment, nine out of 10 articles that are written about the Gaza conflict are critical of Israel," he concluded.

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U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman posted a video to the "U.S. Embassy Jerusalem" Facebook page of himself standing in front of scaffolding covered in blue and white drapes.

Behind him are signs reading "Trump is a Friend of Zion" and "Trump Make Israel Great" – a reference to U.S. President Donald Trump's election slogan "Make America Great Again."

At a press conference on Friday, Friedman said the relocation of the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem is first and foremost in "the interests of the United States."

A small interim embassy is set to open inside an existing American consulate building in Jerusalem on May 14, the 70th anniversary of Israel's founding. A larger site will open at a later date, when the rest of the embassy relocates from Tel Aviv. The Jerusalem embassy is expected to be fully operational in three years' time.

"We are so excited," said Friedman, a Trump appointee who was a strong advocate of the embassy move.

"We have the official seal of the United States Embassy. We have the dedication plaque. They are covered right now, but on Monday they are going to be unveiled."

Praising Trump's December decisions to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and move the U.S. Embassy to the city, Friedman signed off in  Hebrew and English with the words "This year in Jerusalem," a take on the oft-said adage (from the Passover Haggadah) "Next year in Jerusalem."

On Saturday, Trump tweeted, "Big week next week when the American Embassy in Israel will be moved to Jerusalem. Congratulations to all!"

While the American president will not be in attendance at the opening ceremony, he has recorded a congratulatory video message that will be played at the event.

Last week, it was announced that the White House would be sending a presidential delegation to the event that includes Friedman, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, Trump's daughter Ivanka and her husband, senior adviser Jared Kushner, along with special envoy Jason Greenblatt. A separate congressional delegation will also be in attendance.

More than 1,000 people have been invited to the official opening ceremony.

The White House will also host an event in Washington to honor the relocation of the embassy.

Administration officials said official government maps would be updated to reflect the U.S.'s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

Work on the embassy compound, including the paving of a new access road and an emergency escape route, was nearing conclusion, as was the installation of perimeter lighting.

U.S. and Israeli flags have been hung from city street lights and the  Bridge of Strings at the entrance to Jerusalem will be lit in the colors of the U.S. flag in honor of the relocation.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was set to host a special reception in honor of Jerusalem Day and the embassy relocation at the Foreign Ministry headquarters in the Israeli capital on Sunday. While the ambassadors of all the missions to Israel have been invited, only 30 are expected to attend.

Considering their vocal opposition to the embassy's transfer, the Europeans in particular are not expected to take part in the festivities.

The EU sought to condemn the embassy's transfer in an official statement, but was prevented from doing so when member-states Hungary, the Czech Republic and Romania blocked the move, according to a Channel 10 report.

The planned statement, reportedly initiated by France, would have been delivered by EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini and reiterated the European Union's view that Jerusalem is the capital of both Israel and the Palestinians, that the status of Jerusalem should be resolved through direct negotiations and that the EU would not move its embassy to the city.

The decision to move the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem infuriated Palestinians, with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas calling it a "slap in the face" and saying Washington could no longer be regarded as an honest broker in any peace talks with Israel.

Germany has advised its citizens to stay away from Jerusalem's Old City this weekend, citing the possibility of violence surrounding the opening of the embassy.

In line with the United States, Guatemala and Honduras are also set to mark the official transfer of their respective embassies to Jerusalem on Wednesday.

Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat said, "The change in Jerusalem is permeating the world. If in 1967 we unified the capital, in recent years we are opening it up to the world in the diplomatic arena and in the cultural, tourism and economic fields. The transfer of the U.S. Embassy, and of the countries that will follow, is the culmination of this trend. Jerusalem is ready for the historic event."

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At a special event to mark the 70th anniversary of Israel's founding at the Menachem Begin Heritage Center in Jerusalem, Monday, Friedman said he sees Jerusalem as a religious place.

"I hope that young Jews, in particular children, will connect to their Jewish and Israeli roots," he said.

Meanwhile, preparations ahead of the May 14 transfer of the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem are continuing apace. Work is being carried out on the site that also holds the consulate building on David Flusser Street in Jerusalem's Arnona neighborhood. In the initial stage following the transfer, the U.S. Embassy will be situated in what is now the U.S. Consulate building.

Works to pave an access road to the consulate building for Friedman and his staff along with another escape route to be used in case of emergency are currently underway. In addition, a new lighting system is being installed around the consulate to better illuminate the complex and make it easier to secure the site.

A large security team has been stationed on the roads leading to the consulate building to carefully examine everyone who approaches the area.

The Jerusalem Municipality, along with Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat, has also been helping to make sure the transfer goes as smoothly as possible.

While most local residents say they are happy about the U.S. Embassy's transfer to Jerusalem, there are those who fear the move will negatively impact their quiet neighborhood. In particular, they are concerned by the American demand that a wall be erected around the compound. Some residents have already filed their objections to the plan, but as the issue concerns a matter largely considered to be of major national importance, U.S. demands will likely be approved.

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