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Demonstrations across West Bank against moving the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem

Xinhua, January 19, 2017 Adjust font size:

Thousands of Palestinians demonstrated in the West Bank on Thursday against the U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's intention to move the American embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

The demonstrators took the streets in Ramallah, Nablus and Hebron, in response to calls by national and Islamic factions.

They raised Palestinian flags and slogans in public squares and main streets against the potential step, saying "No to moving the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem," "Jerusalem is the key to war and peace," "moving the embassy is considered a termination of the Palestinian-Israeli peace process," and other slogans saying "Stop" in English.

Member of Fatah movement central committee Mahmoud Al-Aloul said "those protests are a message from the Palestinian people against any American step to move it's embassy to Jerusalem."

He highlighted that East Jerusalem "is an occupied city under international law and all international legitimacy resolutions, and any American move to manipulate it are rejected by Palestinians and unaccepted."

Al-Aloul urged Islamic and Arab states to shoulder responsibility against this matter and warned against "the assassination of all treaties and undermining any hope to establish the Palestinian state under the two-state solution and consolidate the Israeli occupation."

The demonstrations come one day ahead the inauguration of Donald Trump as 45th president of the United States.

Trump and his aides expressed support for Israeli settlements and the moving of the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, especially during the electoral campaign.

In reaction, Palestinians launched a diplomatic campaign against such a move. The Palestinian president said on Wednesday that moving the U.S. embassy will destroy the already stalled peace process with Israel.

Palestinian officials warned that if such a move is made, they will reconsider the recognition of the state of Israel.

The Palestinians want East Jerusalem, which was occupied by Israel in 1967, as the capital of their future state, while Israel says all of Jerusalem is the eternal capital of the state of Israel. Endit