The Supreme Court this week heard arguments over whether American citizens born in Jerusalem should have the option of listing Israel as their birthplace.
On Nov. 3, the nine justices weighed claims in a lawsuit filed by the parents of Menachem Zivotofsky, a U.S. citizen born in Jerusalem in 2002. The parents, who hold dual citizenship, want their son’s birthplace on his passport to be listed as Israel, not Jerusalem.
It marks the second time the Supreme Court has heard arguments on the constitutionality of a 2002 provision signed into law by President George W. Bush that allows U.S. citizens born in Jerusalem to have Israel listed as their birthplace on passports. Successive administrations have refused to enforce the provision, maintaining that it favors an Israeli claim to Jerusalem.
The Zivotofskys filed suit after the State Department refused their request.
The Obama administration maintains that changing the wording on passports would damage the American role as a peace broker in the Middle East. Since Israel’s independence in 1948, the United States has taken the position that no country has sovereignty over Jerusalem, and that the city’s status must be determined by negotiations. — jta