The U.S. presidential delegation for the Embassy dedication ceremony in Jerusalem arrived Sunday afternoon in Israel, touching down on the tarmac at Ben Gurion International airport.
U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman greeted Deputy Secretary of State John Sullivan, Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin, Senior Presidential Advisor and Son-in-law Jared Kushner and Presidential Advisor and daughter Ivanka Trump, along with Israel’s Chief of Protocol and the Embassy Chief of Staff. Special Representative for International Negotiations Jason Greenblatt, also a member of the delegation, will attend as well.
Ambassador Friedman is to preside over the dedication, scheduled for Monday, May 14, the secular date of Israel’s 70th anniversary and the day after Jerusalem Reunification Day.
At least 40 members of Congress and a host of Jewish and Christian Zionist and Evangelical leaders are also expected to attend the ceremony in addition to a number of foreign ambassadors.
Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs is holding a reception late Sunday afternoon for the U.S. delegation to the transfer of the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem, at the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem.
The ambassadors of four members nations in the European Union – Austria, the Czech Republic, Romania and Hungary – ignored the intended boycott by the EU to attend the celebration. They also voted together to block the release of a statement by the EU rejecting U.S. plans to officially open its Embassy Monday in Jerusalem.