On this day: in 1950: Jerusalem becomes the capital of Israel

On 23 January 1950, the Knesset voted that Jerusalem should be the capital of Israel.

The declaration was passed 60-2 declaring, according to Israeled.org,  “Whereas with establishment of the state of Israel, Jerusalem once more becomes the capital; Whereas practical difficulties which caused the Knesset and government institutions to be temporarily housed elsewhere have now for the most part been removed and the government is carrying out the transfer of its institutions to Jerusalem; The Knesset expresses the wish that construction of the seat of the government and Knesset in Jerusalem proceed speedily on the site allotted by the government for this purpose.”

Since the declaration, countries have slowly moved their embassies to the Israeli capital. There are now 4 embassies in Jerusalem and 24 consulates. Many countries are also in the process of opening embassies in Jerusalem or are openly considering the move.

Here is a list of the current countries with embassies in Jerusalem:

1) Guatemala 

Opened in 1959, this is the first country to place their embassy in Jerusalem

2) Honduras

A recent addition, Honduras placed their embassy in 2021

3) Kosovo 

Also in 2021, Kosovo became the first muslim nation to recognise Israel's capital

4) The United States

In 2018, Donald Trump oversaw the embassy's move from Tel Aviv.