President Donald Trump announces that the United States was recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. Image by White House

JERUSALEM (JTA) — Israeli officials told local media they were surprised to learn that President Trump may still travel to Israel for the opening of the U.S. embassy in Jerusalem.

When asked during a news conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Friday who would be among the 250-person-strong delegation attending the opening of the controversial Jerusalem embassy, Trump told reporters that “I may go. Very proud of it.”

Trump’s name was not on the documents provided to Israel by the United States regarding the U.S. delegation scheduled to attend the May 14 ceremony, Hadashot news reported.

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

Trump also said during the news conference on Friday that he had nearly signed a plan for relocating and constructing a new embassy at a cost of $1 billion, but then rejected the plan in favor of one that will cost between $300,000 and $400,000. He added that U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman had recommended a pared-down plan that would only cost $150,000 by simply converting the existing consular facility.

The new embassy initially will be housed in southern Jerusalem, in the Arnona neighborhood, on a compound that currently houses the consular operations of the Consulate General of Jerusalem.

Friedman and some staff will begin working out of the consular section beginning in May. In the second phase, by the end of 2019, an annex on site will be constructed for a more permanent working space for the ambassador, staff and a classified processing site. The third phase, the site selection and construction of a new embassy, will take up to nine years.

The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.

Readers like you make it all possible. We’ve started our Passover Fundraising Drive, and we need 1,800 readers like you to step up to support the Forward by April 21. Members of the Forward board are even matching the first 1,000 gifts, up to $70,000.

This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism, because every dollar goes twice as far.

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

2X match on all Passover gifts!

$90 → $180 $180 → $360

$360 → $720

Other amount