RNA - "We gather today to underline the need to continue our intifada (uprising) against the US decision and the Israeli laws on Jerusalem," Khaled al-Batsh, a leader of Islamic Jihad group, told Anadolu Agency on the sidelines of the rally.
Protesters waved banners rejecting US President Donald Trump’s decision last month to officially recognize the holy city as Israel’s capital and relocate the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
Senior Hamas leader Ismail Radwan, for his part, called on Arab and Islamic states to boycott Israel and the US at all levels.
“These protest activities will continue until we down the US decision and Israeli laws regarding Jerusalem,” Radwan stressed.
Trump announced early December 2017 that Washington would be recognizing Jerusalem al-Quds as Israel’s capital, stressing that the United States would relocate the embassy in the occupied lands from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem al-Quds.
The move was hailed by Israel but condemned by the rest of the international community as one which undermines the peace talks.
Washington’s al-Quds move has raised a chorus of outcry across the international community. The Muslim world, the UN, world leaders from Europe to the Middle East to Australia, and even US allies in the West have criticized the bid, saying it would plunge the already tumultuous region into new upheaval.
Heavy clashes also broke out between Israeli troops and Palestinian protesters after Washington's decision in Jerusalem al-Qud's Old City, Hebron (al-Khalil), Bethlehem and Nablus in the West Bank as well as the besieged Gaza Strip.
According to reports, at least 700 Palestinians were detained by the Israeli forces since Washington’s move to recognize Jerusalem al-Quds as the capital of Israel.
17 Palestinians were also killed in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank during weeks of protests against the Washington declaration of Jerusalem as capital of Israel, according to reports.
Also, thousands of Palestinians have been wounded by Israeli army's fire during demonstrations against the US President decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.
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