Court case against Guatemala’s decision to move its embassy to Jerusalem

Lawyer Marco Vinicio Mejla lodged a complaint to the Constitutional Court in Guatemala against the state’s decision to move its embassy from Tel Aviv to occupied Jerusalem.

The decision was made after US President Donald Trump declared the occupied city as Israel’s capital.

Mejla considered his country’s decision a violation of international law, which considers Jerusalem occupied territory.

Read: Guatemala plans to move Israel embassy to Jerusalem

“Such a change of policy should have been put to a referendum. President Jimmy Morales flouted government standards by making the announcement on his Facebook page rather than leaving it to the foreign ministry to make the announcement through official channels.”

On his part, Morales defended the announcement of his decision saying, “Israel is an ally,” and that “Guatemala has historically been pro-Israel”.

Guatemala’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Sandra Jovel denied claims that her country gave in to American pressures when making its decision. She also stated that the date of the embassy move has not yet been decided.