CANBERRA, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has dismissed a warning that recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's capital could provoke violence in the region.
Morrison on Tuesday announced he was "open" to the idea of moving Australia's embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, an act that would follow the lead of U.S. President Donald Trump and recognize the latter as the capital city.
In a bulletin dated Oct. 15, the day before Morrison's announcement, that was leaked to Australian press on Friday, Australia's national security agency, the Australian Security and Intelligence Organisation, warned against the move.
"We expect any announcement on the possible relocation of the Australian embassy to Jerusalem or consideration of voting against the Palestinians within the United Nations may provoke unrest and possibly some violence in Gaza and the West Bank," the bulletin said.
It also warned that withdrawing from the Iran nuclear deal, a key achievement of the Obama administration would spark anti-Australia sentiment in the country.
Addressing the bulletin, Morrison said that there was no suggestion that there was an imminent threat of violence in the region.
"I want to repeat and reassure Australians that ASIO has no evidence at this time of any planned violence in response to the government's announcement on Oct. 16," he said.
The announcement has been widely criticized as an attempt to win support ahead of Saturday's crucial Wentworth by-election where a large percentage of the electorate is Jewish and in favor of recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.
However, it has put Australia's relationship with Indonesia at risk with President Joko Widodo focused on securing support among the nation's conservative Islamic majority ahead of the 2019 election.
