US President Donald Trump’s daughter Ivanka and her husband, Jared Kushner, have arrived in Israel ahead of the opening of the new US embassy in Jerusalem today.
The couple – both senior White House advisers – will attend the ceremony. The plan was brought forward to coincide with the state of Israel’s 70th anniversary.
A small interim embassy will open inside the existing US consulate building in Jerusalem on Monday, while a larger site will be found later when the rest of the embassy moves from Tel Aviv.
Israel regards Jerusalem as its “eternal and undivided” capital, while the Palestinians claim East Jerusalem – occupied by Israel in the 1967 Middle East war – as the capital of a future state.
President Trump, who had announced the decision, is expected to address attendees at Monday’s event via video link.
The presidents of Guatemala and Paraguay are also set to attend; both countries decided to move their embassies to Jerusalem after Mr Trump made his announcement.
The European Union has voiced strong objections to the embassy move, and most EU ambassadors in Israel will be boycotting the event.
Source: AIR