Neither President Donald Trump nor Vice President Mike Pence will be in attendance when the US opens its embassy in Jerusalem next week.
The White House says Mr Trump is instead sending a high-level delegation to the ceremony marking the formal recognition by the US of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
The President ordered the embassy move last year, fulfilling a key campaign promise but drawing condemnation from many US allies, who say the move makes it more difficult to achieve peace between Israelis and Palestinians.
The White House says Deputy Secretary of State John Sullivan is leading the delegation at the new embassy opening, joined by Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and the President’s daughter and son-in-law, White House aides Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner.
Read the article in The New Daily (AAP).