The United States officially relocates its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem Monday in a move sharply opposed by Palestinians and a large portion of the international community.
The interim embassy will operate inside the existing U.S. consulate building in Jerusalem, while a search begins for a larger site.
Palestinians planned to hold large protests Monday in Gaza, where weeks of demonstrations and clashes have led to Israeli forces killing more than 50 Palestinians. Critics have faulted Israeli forces for using live fire, while Israel says its actions are necessary for security.
U.S. President Donald Trump pledged during his campaign to move the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem, and in December he broke with longstanding policy by recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. That same month, the U.N. General Assembly overwhelmingly adopted a resolution rejecting Trump’s decisions regarding Jerusalem.
Israel sees all of Jerusalem as its capital, while the Palestinians view East Jerusalem as the capital of a future Palestinian state.
The issue has long been seen as one of the last big items that would need to be resolved in any Israeli-Palestinian peace deal.
