- The embassy and State Department have confirmed the death, adding that no foul play is suspected
- The embassy direct hire was reported found dead in their apartment
An employee of the US Embassy in Jerusalem has died, the embassy confirmed Monday.
A US spokesperson confirmed the dead employee, an American citizen, is not the US Ambassador to Israel.
A spokesperson for the embassy confirmed the death in a brief statement: ‘We can confirm the death of an American employee of the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem. We have no further details to share.’
They added that ‘foul play is not suspected,’ and the incident is under investigation, but have not released any further information at this time.
Journalist Dimi Reider of The Lead reports that the diplomat was found dead in their apartment.
US State Department spokesperson Ned Price said on Monday afternoon that more information will be available once the deceased employee’s next of kin have been notified.
An employee of the US Embassy in Jerusalem has died, the embassy confirmed Monday
In 2018, the Trump administration moved the US embassy to Jerusalem, from Tel Aviv, where it had been for some five decades.
In 2017, Trump broke with years and years of US policy by officially recognizing Jerusalem as the capital city of Israel.
The move delighted Trump supporters and Israelis, but infuriated Palestinians and parts of the Arab world.
The embassy move was a signature tenet of Trump’s 2016 campaign agenda. The proposal was especially popular among evangelical Christians, many of whom supported Trump’s campaign and his choice of Mike Pence as VP.
Since the mid-90s, US presidents both Republican and Democrat failed to move the embassy to Jerusalem, despite the Jerusalem Embassy Act, which was passed by Congress and became law in 1995.
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