Former US senator Jon Kyl, key author of Jerusalem Embassy Act, dies at 84
In addition to his work securing funding for the Arrow missile defense system, Kyl also fought against former US president Barack Obama’s recognition of a Palestinian state
Jon Kyl, a former U.S. senator from Arizona, passed away at the age of 84 due to complications resulting from a neurological condition, according to an announcement made on Thursday. Serving in the Senate for 18 consecutive years from 1995 to 2013, he returned briefly to the chamber in 2018. Kyl was instrumental in the creation of the 1995 Jerusalem Embassy Act, a piece of legislation alongside Senate majority leader Bob Dole that stipulated Jerusalem as Israel's capital and called for the U.S. Embassy to be moved there.
This act achieved a significant bipartisan majority of 93 votes in favor in the Senate. Despite the U.S. presidents' prior reluctance to fully execute the law, former President Donald Trump acknowledged Jerusalem as Israel's capital in 2017 and relocated the embassy in 2018. Kyl later reflected on this legislation as one of his most cherished legislative accomplishments.
A representative from the Jerusalem Center for Applied Policy mourned Kyl's loss, highlighting his invaluable friendship with Israel, and emphasized that Israel owes him a profound debt for his instrumental role in turning Jerusalem's recognition into a legally enshrined principle in American law.
Written by urgent.news from Jerusalem Post's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
