The passing on Wednesday of former U.S. Sen. Jon Kyl is a profound loss for the United States, the State of Israel and Jerusalem.
Kyl was not merely a steadfast friend of Israel; he was one of the principal architects and leading congressional advocates of the legislation that laid the foundation for America’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
In 1995, Kyl worked alongside Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole to advance legislation to relocate the U.S. Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem. Dole was formally listed as the bill’s sponsor, while Kyl played a central role in shaping and promoting the initiative.
The Jerusalem Embassy Act declared that Jerusalem should be recognized as the capital of the State of Israel and that the U.S. Embassy should be relocated there. It passed the Senate by an extraordinary bipartisan majority of 93–5.
This was not a technical decision concerning the location of a diplomatic building. It was a clear moral and political declaration: Israel, like every other sovereign nation, has the right to determine its own capital, and Jerusalem—the historic and national heart of the Jewish people—is the capital of the State of Israel.
For more than two decades, successive American presidents refrained from fully implementing the law. Yet the legislative and political foundations that Kyl helped establish remained firmly in place.
When U.S. President Donald Trump recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital in 2017 and relocated the U.S. Embassy there in 2018, he brought to fruition the historic objective embodied in the legislation that Kyl had helped shape and advance more than two decades earlier.
Some leaders stand before the cameras when history is made. Others work persistently and resolutely to build the path that enables that historic moment to arrive.
Jon Kyl belonged to the latter group.
He worked quietly, thoroughly and with a deep conviction in the justice of the cause, preferring lasting historical achievements to fleeting headlines.
During his 18 consecutive years in the Senate, from 1995 to 2013, and his brief return in 2018, Kyl was one of Israel’s strongest friends in Congress. He understood Israel’s security needs, the threats confronting it and the strategic importance of the alliance between Israel and the United States.
He did not limit himself to general declarations of friendship. He translated his commitment into meaningful diplomatic and legislative action.
Jerusalem reserves a special place for him in its history.
Kyl understood that recognizing Jerusalem was not an obstacle to peace, but an acknowledgment of a historic truth and a fundamental right: Jerusalem is the capital of the State of Israel and the center of the Jewish people’s national life.
At a time when various actors around the world still seek to challenge Jerusalem’s status, Kyl’s legacy carries particular significance. It reminds us that even an evident truth requires courageous leaders willing to fight for it—and that historic achievements often begin many years before they are finally realized.
The State of Israel and the city of Jerusalem owe him a profound debt of gratitude. His legacy deserves to be commemorated in Jerusalem, the city for whose recognition he worked with such determination.
In doing so, we can express our gratitude to a statesman who helped transform American recognition of Jerusalem from a legislative principle into a diplomatic reality.
On behalf of the Jerusalem Center for Applied Policy, I extend my heartfelt condolences to his wife, Caryll, his family, the people of Arizona and his many friends.
The State of Israel will not forget one of its greatest friends in the Senate, and Jerusalem will not forget the man who helped pave the way for its recognition as Israel’s capital.
May his memory be a blessing.
