Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks to Guatemalan President Jimmy Morales during a meeting at the Prime Minister’s office in Jerusalem following the dedication ceremony of the embassy of Guatemala in Jerusalem, May 16, 2018. Photo: Debbie Hill/Pool via Reuters.

JNS.org – The Arab League lashed out at Guatemala on Wednesday, saying it will no longer engage in relations with the country because of Guatemala’s decision to move its Israel embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

“In accordance with the guidelines of Arab League Secretary General Ahmed Aboul Gheit, the organization’s Secretariat revoked the Memorandum of Understanding with the Guatemalan Foreign Ministry, signed in 2013, and informed the Guatemalan side that cooperation in all fields would be suspended due to the country’s stance on the Jerusalem issue,” a statement issued by the organization stated.

In a document issue by the body on May 18, the body said it would place new emphasis on “developing a comprehensive action plan that includes measures that can be used to counter the decision of the United States or any other state to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel or to move the embassy to this city.”

In 1956, Guatemala became the first country to house its embassy in Jerusalem. It moved the facility to Tel Aviv 24 years later, when the Israeli parliament declared Jerusalem its eternal and indivisible capital.