As it happened: Gaza protest violence

That's it for our live coverage. Here's a summary of the day's major developments.

Violence on Israel-Gaza border

• At least 52 Palestinians were killed and 2,200 others injured by Israeli forces during protests along the border fence on Monday, Palestinian health officials said
• Palestinian officials accused Israeli forces of carrying out a "massacre"
• The Israeli military said "rioters" threw firebombs and explosive devices at the fence and at Israeli soldiers deployed nearby, prompting them to respond with live fire
• The military accused the Palestinian militant group Hamas of using the protests as cover to try to cross illegally into Israeli territory and launch attacks

• Human rights groups condemned the Israeli military's use of live ammunition, saying troops should not have opened fire when there was no immediate threat to their lives

US embassy opening in Jerusalem

• A high-level US delegation opened the new US embassy in Jerusalem
• President Donald Trump addressed the ceremony in a recorded video message. He hailed the move as a “great day for Israel” and said the US would "always be a great friend to Israel and a partner in the cause of freedom and peace".
• Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu thanked Mr Trump for "having the courage to keep your promises". "We are in Jerusalem and we are here to stay," he stated.
• A spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said that by opening the embassy the US had cancelled its role in the peace process and insulted Palestinians.

The Palestinian representative at the United Nations, Riyad Mansour, has called for an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council to stop the "savage onslaught" against civilians in Gaza.

"We condemn in the strongest terms this atrocity by the Israeli occupying forces, using this massive firepower against civilians who have the right to demonstrate peacefully and they have been demonstrating peacefully," he told reporters.

Mr Manous also warned that the US embassy move would deepen "the resentment and atmosphere of hatred between people instead of moving in the direction of peace".

The White House has put out a briefing note after Donald Trump's video statement at the opening of the US embassy in Jerusalem, stressing that the president's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital in December was a "necessary condition for peace between Israelis and Palestinians" and "does not mean the United States has taken a position on final status negotiations".

The note says the administration would continue to work to achieve a comprehensive peace agreement between the Israelis and the Palestinians.

The note also boasts that the new embassy was opened "in just six months" and "at a low cost to taxpayers", with initial modifications to the consulate costing $400,000 (£294,000).

The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Raad Al Hussein has joined condemnations of what he called "shocking" violence on the Israel-Gaza border, and said "those responsible for outrageous human rights violations" should be held to account.

UK Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said has said he is "extremely saddened by the loss of life" in Gaza.

"We understand that there are some people provoking that violence. But on the other hand there has got to be a restraint in the use of live fire," he said.

Johnson said the UK did not agree with the US decision to move its embassy to Jerusalem, and that it continued to think the US was "playing the wrong card at the wrong time".

France’s Foreign Minister, Jean-Yves Le Drian, has called on the Israeli authorities to "act with caution and restraint in the use of force, which must be strictly proportional".

"It is urgent to reinstate the conditions necessary for the pursuit of a peaceful solution in a regional context already marked by high tensions," he added. "France is calling on all actors to act responsibly to prevent a new flare-up."

He also reiterated France's opposition to the US embassy move, saying it "violated international law and, in particular, UN Security Council resolutions".

Mr Le Drian met his UK counterpart, Boris Johnson, in London on Monday.

AFP

The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) has reportedly called for a general strike "to mourn the martyrdom" of protesters on the Israel-Gaza border.

The official Palestinian news agency, Wafa, cited PLO Executive Committee member Wasel Abu Yousef as announcing a "complete strike" across the Palestinian territories.

A spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has warned that the opening of the US embassy in Jerusalem will further destabilise the Middle East.

"With this step, the US administration has cancelled its role in the peace process and has insulted the world, the Palestinian people and the Arab and the Islamic nation and it has created incitement and instability," Nabil Abu Rdeineh told Reuters news agency.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is yet to say anything about the violent clashes at the Gaza border.

He has released a statement praising President Trump's decision to relocate the US embassy, saying he looked forward to returning to Jerusalem soon.

President Trump tweeted twice on Monday to celebrate the embassy's opening, but also chose not to address the deadly violence in Gaza.

His son-in-law and aide Jared Kushner briefly noted the protests in his speech at the embassy opening event, saying the protesters were "part of the problem and not the solution".

Here's Mike Pompeo's statement in full:

USSD

Reuters

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has said 40,000 Palestinians are taking part in "violent riots" in 13 locations along the Israel-Gaza border, and that it is determined to fulfil its mission to protect Israeli territory and civilians.

"The rioters are hurling firebombs and explosive devices at the security fence and at IDF troops and are burning tires, throwing rocks and launching flaming objects with the intention of igniting fires in Israeli territory and harming IDF troops," a statement said.

"IDF troops are responding with riot dispersal means and fire, and are operating according to standard operating procedures."

Rights groups - including Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch (HRW) and others - have condemned the IDF's actions.

“The policy of Israeli authorities to fire irrespective of whether there is an immediate threat to life on Palestinian demonstrators in Gaza, caged in for a decade and under occupation for a half century, has resulted in a bloodbath that anyone could have foreseen,” said Sarah Leah Whitson, the HRW's Middle East director.

AFP

An Israeli fighter jet has struck a military training facility belonging to the Palestinian militant group Hamas in the northern Gaza Strip, according to a statement from the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).

"The strike was conducted in response to the violent acts of the last few hours being carried out by Hamas along the security fence," the statement says.

Earlier, an aircraft and a tank targeted two Hamas military positions in response to an incident in which Israeli forces were fired upon, the statement adds.

"The IDF operates with determination in order to prevent massive terror activities constantly being led by the Hamas terror organisation in. Each act of terror will be met with a harsh response."

Hamas and other groups organising the protests on the Israel-Gaza border say they are peacefully calling for the right of Palestinian refugees to return to land they fled from or were forced to leave in 1948, when Israel was created.

The Israeli government has long ruled out any right of return and says terrorists are using the cover of the protests to try to cross illegally into its territory.

Egypt's foreign ministry has released a statement condemning the Israeli military's use of force at the border.

Egypt rejects the use of force against peaceful marches demanding legitimate and just rights, and warns of the negative consequences of this dangerous escalation in the occupied Palestinian territories."

As triumphant speeches continue at the new US embassy, the Palestinian foreign ministry has accused the US administration of “acting on its arrogance of power and disdain for Palestinian rights” and stressed that the fate of Jerusalem “will only be determined in line with international law”.

"As the Palestinian people commemorate seventy years since the onset of their Nakba (catastrophe) of dispossession, denial, and injustice, the US administration added insult to injury in Jerusalem by defying international law and rejecting UN Security Council resolutions relevant to Palestinian rights, especially in Jerusalem," a statement carried by the official Wafa news agency says.

The ministry adds: "The Palestinian leadership will continue to pursue all available legal and diplomatic avenues to defend our people's rights from Israel's entrenched regime of colonisation and aggression as well as states that defend and sponsor this regime of oppression. This is also an international responsibility."

Israel regards Jerusalem as its "eternal and undivided" capital, while the Palestinians claim East Jerusalem - occupied by Israel in the 1967 Middle East war - as the capital of a future state.

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke after Kushner.

He personally thanked Kushner and Ivanka Trump, and President Trump.

"What a glorious day. Remember this moment. This is history. President Trump, by recognising history, you have made history."

He praised Israeli soldiers who were "protecting the borders of Israel, as we speak, today".

He saluted the intelligence and security services too, to applause from the crowd.

AFP

Today, the embassy of the most powerful nation on earth. Our greatest ally, the United States of America. Today, its embassy opened here!"

Reuters

Jared Kushner minutes ago finished speaking at the opening ceremony. He called Jerusalem "the eternal heart of the Jewish people".

"By moving our embassy to Jerusalem we have showed the world once again that the United States can be trusted."

That remark caused some consternation from commentators, who pointed out that President Trump has just spectacularly reneged on the nuclear deal signed with Iran under the Obama administration.

In the first reference from a Trump official during the ceremony to the violence taking place at the border, Kushner said: "Those provoking violence are part of the problem and not part of the solution."

He said the controversial decision to move the embassy "did not reflect a departure from our strong commitment to lasting peace".

"The United States is prepared to support a peace agreement in every way that we can. We believe that it is possible for both sides to gain more than they give so that all people can live in peace safe from danger, free from fear and able to pursue their dreams," he said.

Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri said in a series of tweets on Monday that the US embassy relocation was a "provocative" move that would "further exacerbate" tension in the region.

"We affirm our complete solidarity with the Palestinian brothers in their legitimate struggle," he said.

Human rights groups have condemned the Israeli military's use of force against protesters at the Gaza border.

Amnesty International called it an "abhorrent violation of international law".

Israeli group B’Tselem said the Israeli authorities had shown an "appalling indifference towards human life" and called for an "immediate halt to the killing of Palestinian demonstrators".

The demonstrations held in Gaza today came as no surprise. Israel had plenty of time to come up with alternate approaches for dealing with the protests, apart from firing live ammunition. The fact that live gunfire is once again the sole measure that the Israeli military is using in the field evinces appalling indifference towards human life on the part of senior Israeli government and military officials. B’Tselem calls for an immediate halt to the killing of Palestinian demonstrators. If the relevant officials do not issue an order to stop the lethal fire, the soldiers in the field must refuse to comply with these manifestly unlawful open-fire orders.

UN Secretary General António Guterres expresses concern about the reported death toll at the protests in Gaza, the Associated Press reports.

"I'm particularly worried about the news coming from Gaza with the high number of people killed," he tells reporters in Vienna.

US Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin and Mr Trump's daughter, Ivanka, unveiled a plaque on the wall of the building that will serve as the temporary home of the US embassy.

"On behalf of the 45th president of the Unites States of America, we welcome you officially and for the first time to the embassy of the United States here in Jerusalem, the capital of Israel," Ms Trump said.

President Trump did not travel to Jerusalem for the opening ceremony, but a video message from him was just played on a big screen there.

He said: "Exactly 70 years ago today the United States under Harry Truman became the first nation to recognise the state of Israel. Today we open the US embassy in Jerusalem. It's been a long time coming."

He added: "Today Jerusalem is the seat of Israel's government. It is the home of the Israeli legislature and the Israeli supreme court and Israel's prime minister and president.

"Israel is a sovereign nation with the right like every other sovereign nation to determine its own capital. Yet for many years we failed to acknowledge the obvious. The plain reality that Jerusalem is Israel's capital.

Mr Trump said he had accomplished the relocation "many many years ahead of schedule", adding that the US would "always be a great friend to Israel and a partner in the cause of freedom and peace".

Mustafa Barghouti, an independent Palestinian MP, tells the BBC that the US embassy move will lead to a rise in tensions and bloodshed:

"The Israelis are thinking that they've got a green light from the Americans to do whatever they want. What we see today is a real massacre. So far, the Israelis have responded to our peaceful marches with lethal weapons. It's a very dangerous situation and this is going to really cause much more victims on the Palestinian side."

At least 37 Palestinian protesters have been killed so far at Monday's protests, according to Gaza health officials. No Israeli fatalities have been reported.

Monday has been the deadliest day since the the start of a series of protests on the border by Palestinians that has been dubbed the "Great March of Return".

Palestinian health officials say at least 37 Palestinians have died so far today, taking the total death toll since protests began on 30 March to at least 90.

Israel says its troops have opened fire to stop infiltrators crossing the border fence.

Reuters

Jared Kusher, Donald Trump's son-in-law and aide, will defend the controversial decision to move the US embassy to Jerusalem when he speaks at the opening ceremony.

Mr Kushner, a former real-estate broker, was controversially charged by Mr Trump with shepherding a new Middle East peace process despite his lack of diplomatic experience.

According to excerpts published by Reuters news agency, Kushner will say:

"While presidents before him have backed down from their pledge to move the American Embassy once they were in office, this president delivered. Because when President Trump makes a promise, he keeps it."

You can watch the proceedings live below:

Israeli jets dropped leaflets on Gaza on Monday morning, ahead of the protests.

"You are taking part in violent riots which jeopardise your lives," the leaflets said.

They warned that the Israeli military would "act against any attempt to damage the security fence or harm IDF [Israel Defense Forces] soldiers or Israeli civilians".

Palestinians were urged not to let the Islamist militant group Hamas, which dominates the Gaza Strip, use them as "puppets".

This holy and disputed city is at the very heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Israel regards Jerusalem as its "eternal and undivided" capital, while the Palestinians claim East Jerusalem - occupied by Israel in the 1967 Middle East war - as the capital of a future state.

Israeli sovereignty over Jerusalem has never been recognised internationally, and according to the 1993 Israel-Palestinian peace accords, the final status of Jerusalem is meant to be discussed in the latter stages of peace talks.

Since 1967, Israel has built a dozen settlements, home to about 200,000 Jews, in East Jerusalem. These are considered illegal under international law, though Israel disputes this.

Meanwhile, dignitaries and guests are gathered in Jerusalem for the inauguration of the new US embassy. The ceremony is due to start at 16:00 local time (13:00 GMT).

Among the guests are Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Trump's daughter Ivanka, her husband Jared Kushner, and US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin.

The newly renamed US Embassy Jerusalem Twitter account is livestreaming images from ceremony - a stark contrast to the violent scenes from Gaza.

The Israeli military says the Palestinian protests are being used as cover for acts of terrorism.

A spokesperson for the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said three people had attempted to place an explosive device next to the Israel-Gaza border fence earlier on Monday.

Israeli troops fired at the assailants, killing them, the spokesperson added.

The IDF estimated that more than 35,000 people were protesting along the frontier. In a statement, it said the Israeli Air Force had targeted Hamas military posts near the Jabalia area after IDF troops were fired on from the northern Gaza Strip.

No soldiers were injured, the IDF said.

Gaza health officials said at least 37 Palestinians had been killed and 1,300 others injured in Monday's violence.

On Twitter, the US president hails the embassy relocation as a “great day for Israel", plugging the Fox TV network but neglecting to mention the deadly violence in Gaza.