Angola sacked two diplomats early this week after they attended last week a ceremony marking the transfer of the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, without Luanda’s consent.
Foreign Minister Manuel AugustoMonday discharged the ministry’s director for Africa, Middle East and Regional Organizations Joaquim do Espírito Santo and the Counsellor of Angolan Embassy in Tel Aviv, João Diogo Fortunato, the state-run news agency ANGOP reported.
Fortunato is the number 2 of Angola’s embassy in Tel Aviv. The two officials have been sacked for failing to comply with the country’s official position on the status of the old city disputed by Israelis and Palestinians.
Fortunato, according the agency, attended the inauguration of the US embassy in Jerusalem on May 14, a day marked by the massacre of over 62 Palestinians, killed by the Israeli forces.
US President Donald Trump in December announced the transfer of the mission from Tel Aviv despite international warmings that the move breaches international consensus over the fate of the disputed city.
Do Espirito was dismissed for allowing Fortunato to attend the controversial ceremony boycotted by the majority of foreign missions in the Jewish state.
Angola is the second African country to have taken a tough stance on the US embassy relocation. South Africa condemned the move and recalled its ambassador from Tel Aviv to protest the killing of Palestinians as they protested against the ceremony.