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Trump Becomes First US President to Visit Jerusalem's Western Wall

by Ken Bredemeier

   U.S. President Donald Trump touched the Western Wall in Jerusalem on
   Monday, the first visit at the Jewish holy site by a serving American
   leader, and one that is steeped in the centuries-old conflicts of the
   Middle East.

   Trump, a Christian wearing a black yarmulke, walked alone to the
   massive stone wall after hearing a brief history of the holiest site in
   Judaism. He placed his right hand on the wall for about 30 seconds and
   then, as is custom, tucked a small prayer note into a crevice.

   The U.S. leader made his brief stop at the Western Wall unaccompanied
   by Israeli leaders, even though they welcomed the visit and the Western
   Wall is a site where Jews pray.

   Trump's visit was ensnared in the history of Jerusalem and the unending
   disputes between Israel and the Palestinians over boundary lines if the
   two sides are ever to reach a peace accord with creation of a
   Palestinian state alongside that of the Jewish state.

   In planning for Trump's visit to Israel, the U.S. delegation rejected a
   request that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accompany him to
   the Western Wall, telling the Israelis it is "not your territory. It's
   part of the West Bank," part of lands that Israel annexed in the
   Six-Day War in 1967.

   The future status of Jerusalem is one of the major unresolved issues in
   whether the Israelis and Palestinians can reach a two-state solution.
   Israel considers Jerusalem as its capital, although the international
   community does not recognize it as such and foreign embassies are
   located in Tel Aviv.

   The Palestinians, if an independent Palestinian state is created, want
   to claim east Jerusalem as their capital.

   Trump, during his run for the White House, said he would move the U.S.
   embassy to Jerusalem, but has since backed off that pledge.

   The Western Wall is the outer wall of what Jews call the Temple Mount,
   the last remnant of the second Jewish temple, built by King Herod and
   destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD.

   Muslims call the same compound al-Haram al-Sharif, home to the al-Aqsa
   mosque, the third-holiest site in Islam. Jewish worshippers visit and
   pray at the Western Wall, while Muslims visit and pray at the mosque
   above the wall.

   With no controversy, Trump also visited the Church of the Holy
   Sepulchre, the site where Christian tradition holds that Jesus was
   crucified and buried in a tomb.

   On his nine-day trip, Trump has noted that he is visiting lands where
   Muslims, Jews and Christians celebrate their founding beliefs, first
   stopping in Saudi Arabia, then Israel before heading to the Vatican for
   a meeting with Pope Francis, leader of the world's Roman Catholics.