JERUSALEM, May 14: Israel on Monday began marking 40 years since it conquered and annexed Arab east Jerusalem but the ceremonies were boycotted by European and US diplomats.

“The last 40 years were only the beginning,” Prime Minister Ehud Olmert told a special parliamentary session marking the anniversary according to the Hebrew calendar.

“I believe, I hope and I pray that we will continue to work together to reinforce Jerusalem in order to extend its boundaries.” Israel captured Arab east Jerusalem on June 7, 1967, the third day of the six-day Middle East war, and unilaterally annexed the sector in a move not recognised by the international community.

Israel in 1980 passed a law declaring Jerusalem “the unified and eternal capital of Israel,”.

Israel’s unilateral moves in Jerusalem have been condemned by UN Security Council Resolutions, including one in 1980 that resulted in 13 Jerusalem-based foreign embassies being moved to Tel Aviv.

US and EU ambassadors have refused to attend Monday’s parliamentary session as well as ceremonies due to be held on Jerusalem Day on Wednesday.—AFP