NBC's Richard Engel Warns: Moving Embassy To Jerusalem May Cause An Intifada

NBC News Chief Foreign Correspondent said moving the U.S. embassy in Israel to Jerusalem would cause a "major international incident" and possibly another intifada. <blockquote>ANDREA MITCHELL, NBC NEWS: The point is that we've had other incoming presidents, usually Republicans saying, yes, we're going to move that embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. But the fact is as you and I both know that could just spark a Palestinian revolt. They view Jerusalem as their capital as well. So the embassy has been in Tel Aviv as a compromise to try to avoid reigniting trouble on the ground. RICHARD ENGEL, NBC FOREIGN CORRESPONDENT: For the last several years when there was an uprising with the Arab Spring you noticed that Israel has sort of gone quiet. The peace process is more or less dead. There is no peace process. And Israel while the Arab world has been in turmoil has effectively been pulling up the gates and trying to focus on domestic politics and not get involved -- not get sucked into the Arab quagmire around it. It's been pleased. Israel has been pleased to see strongmen leaders like [Abdel Fattah] el-Sisi emerge in Egypt. I think that's a trend that's coming. I think under President-Elect Trump we're going to see Israel once again emerging to the forefront. Netanyahu has already reached out. Bibi Netanyahu had a terrible relationship with President Obama. He's trying to reach out and establish a different relationship with soon-to-be President Trump. And that promise to move the embassy. If the United States changes policy and moves the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv and recognizes Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, of the Jewish people, which something Trump did promise in his election campaign, yeah. The Palestinians will not take it lightly. This will be a major international incident. We could see once again an intifada-like situation if that were to happen.</blockquote>