52 Palestinians shot dead as US opens first embassy in Jerusalem

52 Palestinians have been shot dead and over 2238 have been wounded, 770 from live gunfire at the Gaza/Israeli border as Palestinians attempted to break the blockade of Gaza on the same day America became the first nation to officially open an Embassy in Jerusalem.

The demonstrations are part of a six-week protest, allegedly run by Hamas, called the "Great March of Return", in the run-up to their annual commemoration of what they call the Nakba (Catastrophe), when hundreds of thousands of Palestinians fled their homes following the 1948 War Arab-Israeli War and foundation of the Israeli state.

Israeli forces had warned protesters they would use live ammunition to prevent any breach of the border fence and doubled the number of troops deployed along the border in preparation for the confrontation with rioters and protesters.

Monday’s march was estimated to be the biggest so far. Organisers were calling for an end to the Israeli-imposed blockade that has lasted for over a decade, and the right to return for refugees and their descendants to their ancestral homes.

Ivanka Trump and her husband Jared Kushner were in Jerusalem attending the opening of the ceremony as Palestinians attempted to breach the barricades separating the inhabitants of Gaza City and the Israeli state.

During the ceremony, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised the US president: “What a moving day for the people of Israel and the State of Israel. President Trump, by recognising history you are making history. Today the embassy of the most powerful country on earth, our greatest ally the United States, opened here. We are here in Jerusalem and we are here to stay.”

President Trump promised he would move the American embassy from Tel Aviv, the internationally recognised capital of Israel, to Jerusalem during his run to become President in 2016. The move was condemned by the international community including the UK, the EU and Arab states.

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