GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) — The Latest on the opening of the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem and Palestinian protest (all times local):
7:35 p.m.
The Israeli military says there were no border breaches during Monday’s Gaza demonstrations, despite an “unprecedented” level of violence.
The army says it used airstrikes and tank fire against Hamas targets in Gaza after squads of gunmen opened fire and tried to plant bombs along the border.
“We saw more than five explosive devices. We saw shooting at forces,” said Brig. Gen. Ronen Manelis, the chief army spokesman.
Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus, another army spokesman, said hundreds of protesters carried out “concerted, coordinated” attacks on the border fence in an attempt to infiltrate.
Palestinian health officials says 43 people were killed by Israeli fire — the deadliest day of violence since a 2014 war.
The military accuses Hamas of using the protests as cover to carry out attacks.
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7:30 p.m.
The chief Palestinian negotiator is accusing the Trump administration of “burying” Mideast peace hopes by moving the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem.
Saeb Erekat called the new embassy an illegal “settlement outpost.”
The Palestinians claim Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem as their capital and bitterly opposed the U.S. recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
Although President Donald Trump says Monday’s opening of the new embassy does not prejudge the final borders of the city, the move was perceived as taking Israel’s side.
“We also witnessed today a ceremony of the Prime Minister of Israel and the administration of President Trump burying the peace process, burying the two state solution, killing the hope in the minds of the people of the Middle East as a whole with the possibility of peace,” Erekat said.
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7:15 p.m.
The U.N. human rights chief says on Twitter that “Israeli live fire in #Gaza must stop now,” demanding respect for human life.
Zeid Ra’ad al-Hussein decried the “shocking killing of dozens” and the injury of hundreds by Israeli forces in the Palestinian areas amid a crackdown against protests over the inauguration of the U.S. embassy in Jerusalem on Monday.
Zeid, a Jordanian prince who is leaving his post in August after a single term, said the international community needs to ensure justice for the victims.
He added Monday on the U.N. human rights office’s Twitter feed that perpetrators of “outrageous human rights violations” must be held to account.
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7:10 p.m.
Gaza’s Health Ministry says the number of Palestinians killed by Israeli army fire has risen to 52, making it the deadliest day in Gaza since a 2014 war with Israel.
It says 1,204 Palestinians were shot and wounded Monday in mass protests near the Gaza border fence with Israel. The ministry says this includes 116 who were in serious or critical condition.
The statement says about 1,200 others suffered other types of injuries, including from tear gas.
The steadily climbing death toll was bound to fuel international criticism of the military’s open-fire policies against unarmed protesters. Rights groups have said the rules are unlawful.
Israel says it is defending a sovereign border and accuses Gaza’s Hamas rulers of trying to carry out attacks under the cover of the protests
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6:20 p.m.
The world’s largest body of Muslim-majority nations says it “strongly rejects and condemns” the White House’s “deplorable action” to move the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
The 57-nation Organization of Islamic Cooperation said it considers the U.S. move an “illegal decision” and “an attack on the historical, legal, natural and national rights of the Palestinian people.” The organization said the move Monday also represents “an affront to international peace and security.”
The OIC said the U.S. administration has “expressed utter disdain and disrespect to Palestinian legitimate rights and international law” and shown disregard toward the sentiments of Muslims, who value Jerusalem as home to one of Islam’s holiest sites, the al-Aqsa mosque complex.
The statement comes as at least 41 Palestinians, including five minors, were killed by Israeli forces Monday. More than 770 Palestinians were wounded in protests in the Gaza Strip
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5:45 p.m.
A top Turkish official has condemned Israel for deadly clashes along the Israeli-Gaza border, while the foreign ministry blasted the U.S. decision to relocate its embassy to Jerusalem.
Taking to Twitter, the spokesman to the Turkish president called Monday’s clashes that killed at least 41 Palestinians “another dark spot, another crime added to Israel’s wall of shame.”
Ibrahim Kalin criticized the international community for its silence “in the face of this systematic barbarism.” He tweeted: “Palestine is not alone. Jerusalem is not alone.”
The Turkish foreign ministry condemned in a statement the U.S. decision to relocate its embassy to Jerusalem, saying it violated international law and damaged the peace process. It also slammed Israel: “We curse the massacre carried out by Israeli security forces encouraged by this step on the Palestinians participating in peaceful demonstrations.”
The foreign minister, Mevlut Cavusoglu, called Israel’s actions “state terror.”
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5:40 p.m.
Egypt has condemned the killing of dozens of Palestinian protesters by Israeli fire near the Gaza boarder.
Monday’s statement by Foreign Ministry condemned what it said “the use of force against peaceful marches.”
It has also warned of the “negative repercussion of such serious escalation in the Palestinian occupied territories.”
The statement did not mention today’s relocation of the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to contested Jerusalem.
Gaza’s Health Ministry says the number of Palestinians killed by Israeli army fire amid mass protests near the Gaza border has reached 41, making it the deadliest day since a 2014 war with Israel.
The violence made it the deadliest day in Gaza since the devastating cross-border war between the territory’s Hamas rulers and Israel four years ago.
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5:30 p.m.
The European Union’s foreign policy chief is calling on Israel to respect the “principle of proportionality in the use of force,” after Israeli soldiers shot and killed at least 41 Palestinians during mass protests along the Gaza border.
Federica Mogherini said Monday that all should act “with utmost restraint to avoid further loss of life” and added that “Israel must respect the right to peaceful protest.”
At the same time, she insisted that Hamas must make sure demonstrators in Gaza are peaceful and “must not exploit them for other means.”
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5:25 p.m.
The pan-Arab satellite news network Al-Jazeera says one of its reporters has been wounded while covering demonstrations in Gaza.
Qatar-based Al-Jazeera reported Monday afternoon that journalist Wael Dhadouh was “injured by live ammunition from Israeli forces.”
It did not elaborate in a tweet announcing Dhadouh’s injury.
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5:20 p.m.
Israel’s prime minister says Jerusalem will always be the “eternal, undivided” capital of Israel.
Addressing the opening ceremony of the new American Embassy in Jerusalem, Benjamin Netanyahu called it a “glorious” day.
Netanyahu thanked President Donald Trump for showing the “courage” to keep a key campaign promise and says relations with the U.S. have never been stronger.
He says Mideast peace must be founded on what he says is the “truth” recognized by the U.S.
“The truth is that Jerusalem has been and always will be the capital of the Jewish people, the capital of the Jewish state,” he said.
The Palestinians claim Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem as their capital and have strongly objected to Trump’s move.
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5:15 p.m.
Israel’s military says it has carried out five airstrikes in Gaza after militants exchanged fire with soldiers.
Brig. Gen. Ronen Manelis said the military struck training camps of the militant Islamic group Hamas that rules Gaza and has been leading protests along the border with Israel.
He said troops exchanged fire with militants on 3 separate occasions.
Manelis said turn out by Monday afternoon was about 40,000. He said the army views that number as a “failure for Hamas.”
He said the army noticed there were more women at the front of the protest than in past rallies and accused Hamas of paying people to protest.
At least 41 Palestinians were killed by Israeli army fire Monday making it the bloodiest day there since a 2014 war with Israel
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5:10 p.m.
Jared Kushner says Palestinians participating in Gaza border protests are “part of the problem and not part of the solution.”
Kushner, President Donald Trump’s son in law and chief Mideast adviser, expressed hope for forging Mideast peace as he addressed the opening ceremony for the new U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem on Monday.
As he spoke, deadly protests continued along Gaza’s border with Israel. With over 40 dead, it was the deadliest round of cross-border violence since a 2014 war and left Kushner’s peace efforts in tatters.
“As we have seen from the protests of the last month and even today those provoking violence are part of the problem and not part of the solution,” he said.
He says the “journey to peace started with a strong America recognizing the truth.”
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5 p.m.
Hundreds of Arab citizens of Israel, including five members of parliament, are staging a protest near the site of a new U.S. Embassy in contested Jerusalem.
The protest coincided with the inauguration of the embassy Monday afternoon, attended by a high-powered delegation from the Trump administration.
Dozens of police blocked the street near the compound, preventing the protesters from getting closer.
The demonstrators raised Palestinian flags and held signs reading “No to moving the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem.”
The embassy was moved from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem after President Donald Trump recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital in December. The decision infuriated Palestinians, who seek east Jerusalem as a future capital.
In Gaza, at least 41 Palestinian were killed by Israeli fire Monday in a mass protest against the embassy move.
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4:50 p.m.
President Donald Trump says the U.S. remains “fully committed” to pursuing a Mideast peace deal as it opens its controversial new embassy in Jerusalem.
In a videotaped message to the opening ceremony Monday, Trump said the new embassy has “been a long time coming.” Moving the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem from Tel Aviv was one of Trump’s key campaign promise that was welcomed by Israel.
But the move has infuriated the Palestinians, who claim east Jerusalem as their capital and have said that the move disqualifies the U.S. as a Mideast peace mediator.
Trump said his “greatest hope” is for peace. He said the United States “remains fully committed to facilitating a lasting peace agreement.”
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4:30 p.m.
Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri calls the U.S. decision to move its embassy to Jerusalem a “provocative” act that closes the doors for any attempts to reach peace between the Israel and Palestinians.
Hariri in a series of tweets Monday said he regrets “this decision that is igniting the anger of millions of Arabs, Muslims and Christians.” He said Lebanon denounces the “provocative” decision that is deepening the conflict and allowing the “Israelis to spill more blood of innocent Palestinians and increases the intensity of extremism that threatens the world community.”
The embassy move comes on day marking Israel’s creation 70 years ago, a day Arabs call the “nakba” or catastrophe, in reference to the displacement of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians who fled or were expelled from what is now Israel. Lebanon was one of the Arab countries to receive many of the Palestinian refugees. Today, there are more than 170,000 Palestinian refugees living in Lebanon.
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4:25 p.m.
Iran’s foreign minister is calling today’s opening of the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem “a day of great shame.”
Mohammad Javad Zarif on Monday wrote on Twitter: “Israeli regime massacres countless Palestinians in cold blood as they protest in the world’s largest open air prison. Meanwhile, Trump celebrates move of U.S. illegal embassy and his Arab collaborators move to divert attention.”
Zarif likely was referring to Gulf Arab countries, which so far haven’t commented on Israeli fire killing at least 37 Palestinians during mass protests along the Gaza border as officials marked the opening of the embassy.
Zarif wrote the tweet as he’s traveling abroad to try to keep other world powers in the Iran nuclear deal following Trump’s decision last week to pull America from the 2015 accord.
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4:20 p.m.
American and Israeli delegations have begun a festive ceremony to mark the opening of the new U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem.
U.S. Ambassador David Friedman welcomed the crowd. “Today we open the United States embassy in Jerusalem Israel,” he said to warm applause.
Jared Kushner and his wife Ivanka Trump, both top aides to President Donald Trump, are leading a high-powered American delegation that also includes the treasury secretary and four Republican senators.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is also in the audience.
The ceremony was taking place as Palestinians are holding a mass protest on the Gaza border with Israel. Some 37 people were killed on Monday, in the deadliest day of cross-border violence since a 2014 war.
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4:15 p.m.
The head of the United Nations says he is worried about the news coming from Gaza, “with the high number of people killed.”
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed his concerns Monday in Vienna, as clashes were taking place along the Israeli-Palestinian border and senior aides to U.S. President Donald Trump were in Jerusalem celebrating the opening of the new U.S. embassy there.
Guterres said, “I’m particularly worried about the news coming from Gaza with the high number of people killed.”
The relocation of the embassy from Tel Aviv has infuriated the Palestinians, who seek east Jerusalem as a future capital.
The Gaza Health Ministry announced Monday afternoon that the death toll of Palestinians killed by Israeli fire had risen to 37.
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4 p.m.
Pastor Robert Jeffress says “it’s sad” that former presidential candidate Mitt Romney lashed out at him ahead of the inauguration of the U.S. embassy in Jerusalem.
Jeffress said “I think it’s sad that Mitt feels the need to lash out in anger on such a historic day but it’s not going to overshadow what is happening here.”
Speaking to The Associated Press before he was set to deliver the blessing at the opening ceremony Monday, Jeffress said things attributed to him have been taken out of context.
Mitt Romney had previously denounced Jeffress as a “religious bigot.”
Jeffress, leader of a Dallas-area Baptist church and a spiritual adviser to President Donald Trump, has drawn criticism for calling Islam and Mormonism “a heresy from the pit of hell” and saying Jews “can’t be saved.”
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3:45 p.m.
Amid deadly clashes along the Israeli-Palestinian border, senior aides to President Donald Trump are in Jerusalem celebrating the opening of the new U.S. embassy there.
The relocation of the embassy from Tel Aviv has infuriated the Palestinians, who seek east Jerusalem as a future capital.
As the Gaza Health Ministry announced that the death toll of Palestinians killed by Israeli fire had risen to 37, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told Fox News that Monday was an “incredible, momentous day” and said it was “great honor” to lead the dedication ceremony on Trump’s behalf.
Mnuchin also said “it’s not coincidental” that the opening of the new embassy coincided with Trump’s announcement that he planned to withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal.
Mnuchin has repeatedly said of Jerusalem: “This is the capital of Israel.”
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3:40 p.m.
Gaza’s Health Ministry says the number of Palestinians killed by Israeli army fire amid mass protests near the Gaza border has reached 37, making it the deadliest day since a 2014 war with Israel.
The ministry says at least 448 Palestinians were shot and wounded Monday, while hundreds more suffered other types of injuries, including from tear gas.
The violence made it the deadliest day in Gaza since the devastating cross-border war between the territory’s Hamas rulers and Israel four years ago, and clouded the opening of the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem.
The deaths brought to 79 the number of Palestinians killed by Israeli soldiers firing from across the border fence since mass border protests began in late March. More than 2,200 Gaza residents have been wounded in that time by Israeli fire.
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3:15 p.m.
Several dozen Palestinian stone-throwers are clashing with Israeli troops on the outskirts of Jerusalem.
Witnesses say that in one area, north of Jerusalem, soldiers are firing live bullets, tear gas and rubber-coated steel pellets. A second clash was reported between Jerusalem and Bethlehem. There were no immediate reports of injuries.
Earlier Monday, several thousand gathered in the West Bank city of Ramallah to protest the inauguration of a new U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem later that day.
Palestinians seek east Jerusalem as a capital and view the Trump administration’s recognition of the city as Israel’s capital as a show of pro-Israel bias.
Palestinians are also marking the 70th anniversary of the “nakba,” or catastrophe, when hundreds of thousands were expelled or fled in the Mideast war over Israel’s 1948 creation.
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3:10 p.m.
European foreign ministers say the U.S. decision to move the American embassy to Jerusalem is unwise and likely to exacerbate tensions.
Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney said Monday that the move “is inflaming already a very tense situation, and the relationship between Israelis and Palestinians.”
His Dutch counterpart, Stef Blok, said “we don’t consider it a wise decision to move the embassy.”
Their comments come after the Czech Republic, Hungary and Romania blocked the full 28-nation European Union from publishing a statement about the U.S. move.
The U.S. is to formally inaugurate the embassy later Monday.
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3:05 p.m.
Gaza’s Health Ministry says the number of Palestinians killed by Israeli army fire near the Gaza border has reached 25.
This makes Monday the deadliest day in Gaza since the devastating cross-border war between the territory’s Hamas rulers and Israel in 2014.
The deaths brought to 67 the number of Palestinians killed by Israeli soldiers firing from across the border fence since mass border protests began in late March. More than 2,000 Gaza residents have been wounded in that time by Israeli fire.
The Hamas-led marches, fueled by growing despair in Gaza, are aimed at breaking a decade-long blockade of the territory by Israel and Egypt.
Monday’s march also protests the inauguration of a U.S. Embassy in contested Jerusalem later in the day.
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3 p.m.
A senior figure in Gaza’s ruling Hamas group says mass border protests against Israel will continue until Palestinians have achieved their rights.
Ismail Radwan spoke as thousands rallied near the border fence Monday in the largest protest since his Islamic militant group launched a campaign in late March to break the decade-old blockade of the territory.
By mid-day Monday, 18 Palestinians had been killed and close to 500 wounded by Israeli soldiers firing from across the border fence. Israel has said it will block a possible breach of the border at any cost.
Despite the rising death toll, Hamas was doubling down. Radwan says “we will continue on this path until the rights of the Palestinian people are achieved.”
Since March, 60 Palestinians have been killed in the unrest along the border.
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2:45 p.m.
The Israeli military says troops shot and killed three Palestinians who were trying to place an explosive device by the border fence in Gaza during mass protests.
The shooting in the southern Gaza town of Rafah came as thousands of Palestinians protested at the border against the relocation of the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem and against a decade-long blockade of Hamas-ruled Gaza by Israel and Egypt.
The Palestinian Health Ministry in Gaza says at least 18 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire.
In a separate incident, the army says an Israeli aircraft bombed a Hamas military post in the northern Gaza Strip after Israeli troops came under fire. No Israeli casualties were reported.
The Israeli military says over 35,000 protesters are taking part in demonstrations at 12 points along the Gaza border.
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2:40 p.m.
Gaza’s Health Ministry says the number of Palestinian protesters killed by Israeli army fire near the Gaza border has risen to 18.
Monday’s deaths bring to 60 the number of protesters killed since mass border protests against a decade-old blockade of the Hamas-ruled territory began in late March.
The rising death toll is bound to overshadow the festive inauguration of a U.S. Embassy in contested Jerusalem later Monday. Palestinians say the embassy opening is a show of blatant pro-Israel bias by the Trump administration.
Monday’s bloodshed will likely revive international criticism of open-fire rules that allow soldiers to use lethal force against unarmed protesters.
Israel says it has the right to defend its border and that it will block a border breach at any cost.
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2:30 p.m.
The Arab League and the top Sunni Muslim religious authority have criticized the relocation of the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to contested Jerusalem.
The Cairo-based Arab League called on the international community to oppose what it considers an “unjust decision” and the ongoing “Israeli occupation” of the city.
It called the move a “blatant attack on the feelings of Arabs and Muslims,” and a “grave violation of the rules of international law” that would destabilize the region.
The Palestinians, who claim east Jerusalem as the capital of their future state, have called for an urgent meeting at the Arab League on Wednesday to discuss the matter.
Egypt’s Al-Azhar religious institution called on the international community to use “all peaceful means” to “dismiss positions of countries that sided with the Zionist entity,” referring to Israel.
The U.S. is to formally inaugurate the embassy in Jerusalem later on Monday. The Palestinians are holding mass protests along the Gaza border to condemn the move, and to try to break a decade-old blockade of the Hamas-ruled territory by Israel and Egypt.
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2:20 p.m.
A top Russian diplomat has criticized U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to move the U.S Embassy to Jerusalem, saying it will further fuel tensions between Israel and the Palestinians.
The U.S. Embassy is due to officially relocate to Jerusalem on Monday, after Trump recognized it as the capital of Israel in December.
Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov on Monday described the relocation of the embassy as “short-sighted.”
Bogdanov said in an interview with the Interfax news agency that the decision “runs against the stance of most of the international community.” He blamed the U.S. for “a sharp escalation around Gaza” and said the relocation of the U.S. embassy “could spark large-scale confrontations between Palestinians and the Israelis and cause a rising number of casualties.”
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2:05 p.m.
Gaza’s Health Ministry says the number of Palestinian protesters killed by Israeli army fire near the Gaza border has risen to 16.
Monday’s deaths bring to 58 the number of protesters killed since mass border protests against a decade-old blockade of the Hamas-ruled territory began in late March.
Israel has said it will prevent a border breach at any cost. A growing casualty toll Monday was bound to revive international criticism of open-fire rules under which soldiers are permitted to shoot anyone approaching the border fence.
Rights groups have said such rules are unlawful. Israel says it has the right to defend its border.
