Saudi envoy to Palestine publishes 1947 photo of kingdom's Jerusalem consulate 

Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to Jordan and Palestine, Nayef Al-Sudairy, has published a 1947 photograph of the kingdom’s consulate inauguration in East Jerusalem. 

“Under the direction of the late His Majesty King Abdulaziz Bin Abdul-Rahman in 1947, Uncle Abdulaziz Bin Ahmed Al-Sudairy sponsored the opening of the Saudi Consulate General in Jerusalem, Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood,” tweeted Al-Sudairy alongside the photo. 

The picture shows a number of Saudi diplomats and signs reading “Consulate General” in both Arabic and English along with the emblem of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia at the building’s entrance. 

The Saudi government named Al-Sudairy as the “Non-resident ambassador to the State of Palestine and Consul General in Jerusalem” at the weekend. The ambassador presented his credentials to the Palestinian president’s advisor for diplomatic affairs, Majdi Al-Khalidi, at the Palestinian Embassy in the Jordanian capital, Amman. 

“The appointment comes to give relations with Palestine an official character in all fields,” Al-Sudairy told journalists, “whether political, economic or social, and we look forward to a promising future for these relations.”

The publication of the photograph of the Jerusalem consulate came hours after Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen played down the significance of the Saudi decision. 

READ: Saudi Arabia’s 1st ambassador to Palestine presents letter of credentials

“This could be a delegate who will meet with representatives in the Palestinian Authority,” Cohen told Tel Aviv radio station 103 FM. “Will there be an official physically sitting in Jerusalem? This we will not allow.”

Saudi Arabia did not issue an official response to the Israeli minister’s comments. 

A number of consulate generals accredited to the Palestinian Authority are located in East Jerusalem including those from Turkey, France, Greece, Sweden, the Holy See, Italy, Spain and Belgium. 

In 2018, the then US President Donald Trump closed the Consulate General in Jerusalem accredited to the Palestinian Authority and merged it with the US Embassy which he moved from Tel Aviv to the Holy City in a blatant violation of international law and convention. Most countries do not recognise Jerusalem as Israel’s capital city. The Zionist state’s annexation of the city remains illegal under international law.