Egypt removes Hebrew name of Jerusalem from educational curricula

CAIRO - 2 January 2018: The Ministry of Education instructed all Education Directorates on Tuesday to omit the word "Jerusalem" in Hebrew, Yerushalayim, from the book, “Alf Akhtraa W Akhtraa” (A thousand invention and invention). The Arabic translation of Jerusalem, al-Quds, is still in the curricula.

In the last few weeks, President Donald Trump defied overwhelming global opposition by announcing the relocation of the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

On the other hand, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) voted, overwhelmingly, in a rare emergency session of the global body, to condemn Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

Over the past month, pictures from several schools across Egypt circulated on social media showing students and teachers keen to discuss Jerusalem's history as part of Palestinian and Arab lands, explaining the significant historical error committed by the American president Donald Trump when he declared the Holy City as the official Israeli capital.


Egyptian schools discuss Jerusalem history Thursday 7 December 2017, following Trump’s declaration of the religious city as Israel’s official capital – Press photo

Egyptian schools discuss Jerusalem history Thursday 7 December 2017, following Trump’s declaration of the religious city as Israel’s official capital – Press photo



However, Trump refused and threatened to cut off financial aid to the countries that voted against his decision.

Despite his threat, the General Assembly, consisting of 193 countries, approved the resolution demanding that the United States rescind its declaration on Jerusalem, by a massive margin, with 128 nations in favor and nine against. There were 35 abstentions.

Simultaneously, Arabs and Muslims across the Middle East expressed their condemnation of Trump’s decision. The Arab Initiative Committee also held an emergency meeting at the League of Arab states to discuss developments in Jerusalem.

Egypt said the Arab countries were considering taking the Arab draft resolution on maintaining the status of Jerusalem to the United Nations General Assembly after the U.S. vetoed the resolution at the Security Council.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Jerusalem was the “eternal capital of the State of Palestine” and that Trump’s move was “tantamount to the United States abdicating its role as a peace mediator.”

Israel seized control of the Eastern part of the city in the six-Day War in 1967 and annexed East Jerusalem in 1980, a move that has never been recognized by the international community. The Palestinians have long demanded the occupied East Jerusalem to be the capital of their future state.

Peace negotiations between the Palestinian authorities and Israel have lasted for more than two decades based on the 1993 Oslo accords; it has been stalled since 2014.

In recent years, Israel has intensified the construction of hundreds of illegal Jewish settlements in occupied East Jerusalem and the West Bank, thus creating new demographics that weaken the ability of the Palestinians to build a geographically contiguous state.