Why Trump's Israel ambassador could upend relations in the Middle East

[spanone]

Washington (CNN)Donald Trump's designated ambassador to Israel signals a potential shift in long-standing US policy that has implications for Washington's relationships in the region, with Europe and even the American Jewish community.

The President-elect tapped New York-based attorney David Friedman Thursday to represent the United States. Friedman, who maintains a residence in Jerusalem, is known for hardline views that depart from decades of established American policy and in some cases are to the right of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Friedman argues that Israeli settlement construction in Palestinian areas shouldn't be illegal and has called the effort to find a two-state solution an "illusion." In Trump's announcement, the bankruptcy lawyer and Orthodox Jew welcomed moving the embassy from Tel Aviv to "Israel's eternal capital, Jerusalem" -- settling in one phrase a fraught issue that has been designated for final peace talks, as Palestinians claim Jerusalem as their capital as well.

The upshot, analysts and experts say, is that there's likely turbulence ahead. The Israeli-Palestinian conflict has ebbed as an issue of concern for the Middle East, roiled by five years of war that have changed regional dynamics. But a US shift in the status quo of Jerusalem -- home to the third-holiest site in Islam as well as the holiest in Judaism -- and away from forging a state for the Palestinians, long seen as an important cause by other Arabs, could revive regional tensions.

http://www.cnn.com/2016/12/17/politics/david-friedman-ambassador-to-israel-nominee/index.html

[FarCenter]

1. The two state solution is an illusion -- if it was feasible, it would have happened by now

Settlements continue to absorb territory and public opinion in Israel continues to shift against the two state solution.