Secretary of State Marco Rubio has visited occupied East Jerusalem, giving US backing to an illegal Jewish settler-led project that critics say undermines prospects for a future Palestinian state.
The visit on Monday, from which international and local media were barred, marked the latest endorsement by the Trump administration of initiatives that opponents say are aimed at cementing Israel's claims to East Jerusalem.
The so-called City of David archaeological park, located under the village of Silwan, sits in the shadow of the elevated compound of Haram al-Sharif, also known as the Noble Sanctuary, near the Al Aqsa Mosque.
The global heritage body UNESCO opposed the construction of the park in the Palestinian neighbourhood of Silwan.
The visit comes ahead of a meeting of world leaders at the United Nations in New York this month, where Britain, France, Canada, Australia and Belgium are expected to formally recognise a Palestinian state, which Israel rejects.
Rubio has said that the move will only encourage Israel to take its own actions to prevent the formation of a Palestinian state.
Residents and Israeli advocacy groups say the excavations under Silwan have been conducted beneath Palestinian homes without consulting residents and do not meet the standards of professional archaeology.
Fakhri Abu Diab, an activist from Silwan, said the excavations were conducted without transparency and contravened international law on occupied territories.
Rubio's visit would embolden Israel and its settler movement, he said. "This act by the United States gives the green light for more settlement expansion, demolitions, ethnic cleansing, and all the practices carried out by Israel," he said.
Run by illegal settlers
Since capturing the area, Israel has pursued policies aimed at maintaining a Jewish majority in Jerusalem, while Palestinian residents face home demolitions, restrictive building permits, and what advocacy groups describe as systematic discrimination.
The City of David park has been operated since the early 2000s by Elad, an illegal settler group that has appropriated land, acquired Palestinian homes and pushed for the forced eviction of Palestinian families in Silwan, according to a July report by the UN's Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory.
"Despite its rich, heterogeneous history, the narrative presented at the City of David site focuses only on the site's Jewish history, disregarding all other periods and cultures," the panel's report said.
Rubio's visit to Jerusalem began on Sunday when Netanyahu led him and US Ambassador Mike Huckabee on a tour of the Western Wall. They also visited the nearby Western Wall tunnels, another Israeli excavation that has been criticised by the UN.
A State Department spokesperson said Sunday's visit reaffirmed "America's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's eternal capital."
