US President Donald Trump delivers a statement on Jerusalem from the Diplomatic Reception Room of the White House in Washington, DC on December 6, 2017. / AFP / MANDEL NGAN
Washington: President Donald Trump recognized the disputed city of Jerusalem as Israel's capital Wednesday, a historic decision that overturns decades of US policy and risks triggering a fresh spasm of violence in the Middle East.
"I have determined that it is time to officially recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel," the US leader said in a speech from the White House.
Trump's announcement plunges the United States into a decades-long dispute over a city considered holy by Jews, Muslims and Christians, and flies in the face of warnings from US allies and leaders across the Middle East.
