Gaza man shot dead as hundreds in West Bank protest over Trump's Jerusalem decision

Trump effigy Credit: PA

A man has been killed and dozens more were wounded in clashes between Israeli forces and protesters in the West Bank, the Palestinian health ministry said.

Mohammed Al-Masri, 30, died after being struck by live fire east of Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, the ministry said.

More than 35 Palestinians were injured, two seriously, it added, after they were hit by live rounds or rubber-coated steel, or inhaled tear gas, the officials added.

Also on Friday, Israeli warplanes struck Hamas military targets in the Gaza Strip in response to a rocket fired from the zone that Israel's military said was intercepted by its Iron Dome missile-defense system.

The Palestinian health ministry said at least 15 people were injured in the air strikes.

Clashes between Palestinians and Israeli forces erupted after Friday midday prayers in the cities of Hebron, Bethlehem and Ramallah against President Donald Trump's decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

The Israeli military said in a statement that during clashes along the border fence, soldiers "fired selectively at two main instigators" and confirmed hitting them.

It is the first confirmed death in two days of unrest.

Thousands took to the streets in Gaza and marched to denounce US President Donald Trump's proclamation.

Palestinian worshippers also rallied outside Jerusalem's Al Aqsa Mosque, a flashpoint site in the holy city.

Demonstrations have also been taking place across the Middle East and many Muslim nations including Iran, Jordan and Pakistan, with some protesters stamping on posters of Donald Trump or burning American flags.

A protester in Ramallah about to launch a projectile at Israeli forces. Credit: ITV News/Dan Rivers

The latest unrest came a day after clashes were reported in the West Bank and Gaza Strip between Palestinians and Israeli security forces.

Demonstrators burned posters of Mr Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, as well as American and Israeli flags.

Dozens of Palestinians were slightly injured in the clashes, mostly from tear gas inhalation.

Elsewhere, hundreds of Muslims in Indonesia and Malaysia protested outside US Embassies.

And in Chicago, hundreds of protesters carried a large Palestinian flag as they marched through the streets.

Protesters burn a poster of Donald Trump outside the US embassy in Kuala Lumpur. Credit: AP

The US president's decision has sparked international condemnation.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said the US could no longer act as a broker in the peace process.

Militant Islamist group Hamas' leader said the announcement was like a "declaration of war" on Palestinians, as he called for a new uprising.

Ismail Haniyeh said there should be a new "Intifada" against the "Zionist enemy".

"This decision has killed the peace process, has killed the Oslo [accord], has killed the settlement process," he said in a speech in Gaza City on Thursday.

The UK, France, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Iraq were among those to oppose the decision.

Some 14 members of the UN Security Council spoke out against President Trump's decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital at an emergency meeting on Friday, with Britain's ambassador Matthew Rycroft calling it "unhelpful to peace".

However, the US's representative, Nikki Haley, told the meeting that America is more committed to peace "than we've ever been before - and we believe we might be closer to that goal than ever before".

A woman waves a Palestinian flag during a demonstration in Ramallah. Credit: ITV News/Dan Rivers

But Mr Netanyahu described it as an "historic day" and an "important step towards peace".

Mr Trump broke with decades of US neutrality on the fate of Jerusalem, in line with an international consensus that the fate of the holy city should be determined in negotiations.

Hamas has called for a new 'Intifada'. Credit: AP

Palestinians have long received international assurances that the fate of the city will be determined in negotiations.

The Palestinians believe Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem, captured by Israel in 1967, should be their future capital.

In recognising Jerusalem as Israel's capital, Mr Trump was seen as siding with Israel, which claims the entire city.

Jerusalem lies at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Credit: AP

In a speech in Washington DC, Mr Trump said his decision was the "right thing to do" and a "long overdue step to advance the peace process," stressing the US was not taking a position on specific boundaries or the resolution of contested borders.

He said he intends "to do everything" in his power to help forge a peace deal between Israelis and Palestinians and was "prepared to back a two-state solution".

He also confirmed his oft-repeated campaign promise to move the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

  • Why does Jerusalem matter?

The status of Jerusalem has long been a sensitive issue in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and is considered disputed territory by many countries.

Both Israel and Palestine claim Jerusalem as their capital, but neither is internationally recognised.

In 1980, Israel passed a law declaring Jerusalem to be Israel's "complete and united" capital, but the United Nations Security Council condemned this and passed a resolution that it would not recognise the law.

Palestinians, meanwhile, see east Jerusalem, which Israel captured in 1967, as their capital and view Mr Trump's move as a decision to side with Israel.

The president said recognising Jerusalem as Israel's capital was the 'right thing to do'. Credit: AP