US Secretary of State John Kerry addressed members of the US House Foreign Relations Committee on Thursday that it is a “mistake” for Israel to insist on the Palestinian Authority recognizing Israel as a Jewish State because that distinction is already enshrined in international law. “‘Jewish state’ was resolved in 1947 in Resolution 181 where there are more than 40– 30 mentions of ‘Jewish state,'” Kerry continued. “In addition, chairman Arafat in 1988 and again in 2004 confirmed that he agreed it would be a Jewish state. And there are any other number of mentions.” The testimony came ahead of PA President Mahmoud Abbas’ trip to Washington next week and on the same day as Israel’s Knesset passed a law requiring any withdrawals from eastern Jerusalem or the Golan Heights to be approved by a public referendum.
