US Embassy Project in Jerusalem Moves Forward
The Israel Land Authority has approved allocation of state land for the construction of the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem.
President Donald Trump’s plan to erect a permanent, purpose-built United States Embassy in Jerusalem took a key step forward on May 19 when the Israel Land Authority (ILA) approved the transfer of a state-owned 7.7-acre plot in Talpiot to the American government to build the diplomatic compound. The decision marks the completion of a three-year bureaucratic process.
Transfer of the strategic site, known as the Allenby Camp, is based on a 1989 agreement between Washington and Jerusalem. In 2023, the District Planning Committee approved a plan for the compound that includes zoning for a diplomatic complex, a 10-floor office tower, an ambassador’s residence, staff housing, operational facilities and parking. The plan was designed by Jerusalem-based Yigal Levi Architectural Studio.
In addition to the Talpiot compound land approved by the ILA to be transferred to American ownership, the State Department previously acquired 7.6 acres adjoining the site from private owners. The transfer was approved despite objections claiming that “the plan sacrifices the neighborhood on the altar of the needs of the United States.”
The site, formerly a British military camp during the Mandate period, is located on land Israel has held since 1948 rather than on territory it captured in the 1967 Six-Day War ownership of which is disputed.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Minister of Foreign Affairs Gideon Sa’ar, and Construction and Housing Minister Haim Katz hailed the approval as a significant decision which completes a major diplomatic move that began with President Trump’s historic decision during his first term to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and relocate the US Embassy here.
Israel considers the construction of the permanent U.S. Embassy building in Jerusalem a step of national and diplomatic importance, as part of strengthening Jerusalem’s international standing as Israel’s capital and deepening the strategic relationship between the two countries.
The current temporary U.S. Embassy, also in Talpiot, opened on May 14, 2018 – the 70th anniversary of the establishment of the State of Israel – and replaced the existing structure on the Tel Aviv seashore. It also merged the historic U.S. Consulate-General on Agron Street in central Jerusalem. That building today operates as the U.S. Palestinian Affairs Unit from which the State Department conducts relations with the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
The move came 23 years after the passage of the Jerusalem Embassy Act of Oct. 23, 1995, which set a deadline of May 31, 1999, for the move. However, the Clinton, Bush and Obama administrations all deferred the move.
Gil Zohar is a journalist and licensed tour guide in Jerusalem.