Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez have made the final decision to relocate Honduras' embassy in Israel to Jerusalem by the end of 2020, Hernandez confirmed in a tweet following a phone conversation with Netanyahu on Sunday evening.
Israel has committed to reopen its embassy in Tegucigalpa.
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Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi played a part in the development. After assuming the role, he approved the budget needed to reopen the embassy.
Honduras will be the fifth country to relocate its embassy in Israel to Jerusalem. The United States and Guatemala have already moved theirs, and Serbia and Kosovo have declared their intent to move their own.
Israeli Ambassador to Guatemala Matty Cohen, who is also responsible for Honduras and was active in negotiating the agreement on the embassy move, told Israel Hayom that "The process wasn't an easy one. If you like, it was rooted in the fact that the Honduran president interned with Mashav [an outreach development program run by the Foreign Ministry] in Israel. Two and a half years ago, after Guatemala announced it was recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, we here in the embassy began working to bring Honduras on board with the process."
Cohen added that "The understanding between the prime minister and the president of Honduras to open embassies in both countries' capitals at the same time, was secured in Brasilia. They met there at [Brazilian President Jair] Bolsonaro's swearing-in ceremony, and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was also there."
Cohen said that there were a few reasons, including the coronavirus pandemic, why the process had taken longer than expected.
"But in the end, we achieved our goal. Honduras is a great friend to Israel, and a big majority of the people there support the move. About half the population there are Evangelical Christians, but even Hondurans of Palestinian descent are in favor of it, including the mayor of Tegucigalpa."
Cohen, who is stationed in Guatemala, said, "I'm proud that both countries [Guatemala and Honduras] who come under our embassy here in Guatemala City will have embassies in Jerusalem. This is a just and important historic move that comes after the step the US took."
Knesset Speaker Yariv Levin said, "President Hernandez made a brave and just decision, and soon the Honduran Embassy will relocate to Jerusalem. This is a direct continuance of the policy that Prime Minister Netanyahu is leading … to anchor the status of Jerusalem as the capital of the State of Israel and strengthen Israel's position among the nations of the world."
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