Israel and Turkey have continued tit-for-tat expulsions of diplomats over violence in Gaza that has killed at least 60 Palestinians. It comes ahead of a meeting of Arab foreign ministers to discuss "Israeli aggression."
Image: Reuters/I. Abu Mustafa
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Turkey has ordered the Israeli consul general in Istanbul, Yosef Lefi-Sfari, to temporarily leave the country, in the latest development of an ongoing spat between the two countries, Turkish state media reported Wednesday.
The move comes after Israel's Foreign Ministry summoned a top Turkish diplomat to be reprimanded for his country's "harsh" treatment of Israel's ambassador in Ankara, Eitan Naeh, who Turkey temporarily expelled on Tuesday.
Also on Wednesday, the Israeli Foreign Ministry said Umut Deniz, the Turkish charge d'affaires in Tel Aviv, was being summoned because of the "inappropriate treatment" of Naeh.
The spat between the two countries has seen Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan exchange heated words on Twitter.
Erdogan tweeted that Netanyahu "has the blood of Palestinians on his hands."
Netanyahu hit back on Twitter, saying "Erdogan is among Hamas's biggest supporters and there is no doubt that he well understands terrorism and slaughter. I suggest that he not preach morality to us."
Arab foreign ministers to hold talks
Arab foreign ministers will hold an emergency meeting at the Arab League on Thursday to "confront the Israeli aggression on the Palestinian people," state media reported Tuesday.
Egypt's state news agency MENA quoted an Arab diplomatic source as saying the meeting was also "to confront the illegal decision taken by the United States to move its embassy to occupied Jerusalem."
The source also said the Arab League was due to hold a preparatory meeting on Wednesday at the level of permanent representatives.
Earlier this week, Saudi Arabia released a brief statement of condemnation and reaffirmed its support for "the Palestinian brotherly people" and their "legitimate rights."
How the Gaza protests against Israel escalated this year
The origin of conflicts in the region could be dated back centuries but this year has seen some key events leading to an escalation in the tension between Israel and Palestinians in Gaza.
Image: Reuters/A. Cohen
Palestinian PM Rami Hamdallah targeted
The convoy of Palestinian Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah of the West Bank-based Fatah group was targeted as he made a rare visit to Gaza on March 13. The Palestinian Authority said it held Hamas responsible, having failed to provide adequate security. Hamas claimed the attack was aimed at hurting efforts to achieve unity and reconciliation.
Image: Reuters/I. Abu Mustafa
Land Day march
Some 30,000 Palestinians took part in the first of the demonstrations on March 30, marking Land Day, named for the 1976 Arab protests against Israeli plans to expropriate land. Some demonstrators ran at the border fence and 16 were killed by Israeli troops with others injured, and some dying later.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/M. Hams
Netanyahu: 'We will hurt them'
Speaking on April 9 in the Israeli town of Sderot, near Gaza, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said: "We have one clear and simple rule and we seek to express it constantly: If someone tries to attack you — rise up and attack him. We will not allow, here on the Gaza border, them to hurt us. We will hurt them."
Image: Getty Images/AFP/G. Tibbon
Protesters injured
Palestinians ran to help a young man injured during the border protest on April 13. Stones had been thrown at border guards and the Israeli troops fired on the demonstrators. Some 45 Palestinians died and hundreds were injured between March 30 and April 27.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/M. Hams
Boy killed on April 20
Protest continued on April 20th, with some Palestinian protesters using kites to transport Molotov cocktails and firebombs over the fence. Israeli snipers killed at least four more Palestinians on April 20th, including a 15-year-old boy. The UN Middle East envoy dubbed the killing "outrageous."
Image: Getty Images/S. Khatib
May 15: US Embassy officially moved to Jerusalem from Tel-Aviv
US President Donald Trump's daugher Ivanka is part of the delegation that opened the new US Embassy in Jerusalem. The transfer of the embassy triggered a fresh wave of protests in which 62 people were killed. The deaths have considerably heightened tensions in the area.
Image: Reuters/R. Zvulun
US no longer seen as partner in Middle East negotiations
As the US celebrated its embassy move from Tel-Aviv to Jerusalem, Palestinian protests escalated. The events coincided with the 70th anniversary of the foundation of modern-day Israel, and Nakba Day, when Palestinians recall those who fled or were expelled as Israel was established.
Image: Reuters/I. Abu Mustafa
More than 60 people were killed in protests
Palestinians carried away a protester injured on May 15th after demonstrations marking the 70th anniversary of Nakba.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/S. Khatib
Palestinian youths run from tear gas
Hamas official Salah al-Bardaweel said on Palestinian television that all but 12 of the dead were members of Hamas. Mahmoud Abbas the head of the Palestine Liberation Organization is planning to pursue a war crimes complaint against Israel at the International Criminal Court.
Image: Reuters/I. Abu Mustafa
Israeli airstrikes pound Hamas military targets in Gaza
Following an increase in cross-border violence in mid-July, Israel pounded Hamas military targets in Gaza, while Palestinian militants fired more than 170 rockets and mortars into Israel. Two Palestinian boys, aged 15 and 16, were killed in Israeli airstrikes, according to Gaza's health ministry. Three Israelis were injured after a rocket landed on a residential home in the Israeli city of Sderot.
Image: picture-alliance/newscom/I. Mohamad
Israel temporarily closes its Kerem Shalom cargo crossing with the Gaza Strip
Days later, Israel blocked all fuel and gas transfers through the Kerem Shalom crossing with the Gaza Strip for six days "in light of the continued terrorist attempts of Hamas." Israel's defense ministry said essential food and medicine deliveries would still get through. The crossing had been shuttered to commercial trade a week earlier.
"This is an important moment for the future of our peoples," Guatemalan President Jimmy Morales said at the embassy inauguration ceremony.
"It is not a coincidence that Guatemala is opening its embassy in Jerusalem right among the first, you were always among the first. You were the second country to recognize Israel," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said.
Paraguay is next in line to move its embassy to Jerusalem later this month.
Early this month while visiting Venezuela, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas called for Latin American countries not to move their embassies to Jerusalem, saying East Jerusalem was "the capital of the Palestinian state."
Who owns Jerusalem?
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Palestinian envoy in US recalled
On Tuesday the Palestinian envoy to Washington was recalled to Ramallah in protest over the US relocating its embassy to Jerusalem.
Chief negotiator, Saeb Erekat, said Husam Zomlot, the Palestine Liberation Organization's chief representative in Washington, was already on his way home.
Palestinian Foreign Minister Riad Malki said President Mahmoud Abbas had instructed Zomlot to return to Ramallah.
"When they [the US] opened their embassy in Jerusalem there was a need for a decision from our side and this was our decision," Malki said.
Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital - a timeline
As the opening date for the new US embassy approaches, DW takes a look at how Donald Trump's controversial decision came to fruition. His decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital sparked protests worldwide.
Image: Reuters/R. Zvulun
US Congress passes Jerusalem Embassy Act
Back in 1995, the US Congress passed the so-called Jerusalem Embassy Act, declaring that Jerusalem "should be recognized as the capital of the State of Israel." The act, however, also allowed the sitting president to delay the move by signing a waiver every six months. Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama all reissued the waiver throughout their presidencies, citing security concerns.
Image: picture alliance/AP Photo/O. Balilty
Trump makes campaign promise
During the 2016 US presidential campaign, Republican candidate Donald Trump promised that, if elected, he would relocate the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, describing the holy city as "the eternal capital of the Jewish people." Trump's declaration attracted a great deal of fervor within Israel and won over scores of Jewish and Evangelical voters in the US.
Image: Reuters/B. Ratner
Trump visits Jerusalem's Western Wall
In May 2017, Trump became the first sitting US president to visit the Western Wall. The site is located in Jerusalem's Old City, which Israel forces captured during the 1967 Six-Day War. According to reports, Trump considered fulfilling his Jerusalem pledge during the visit, but was advised against such a move by foreign policy officials who feared it would only stoke regional tensions.
Image: Reuters/J. Ernst
Trump formally recognizes Jerusalem as Israeli capital
During a speech at the White House on December 6, 2017, Trump said he had "determined it is time to officially recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel," adding that the move was a "recognition of reality." Trump cited the Jerusalem Embassy Act as one of the reasons behind his decision. "While previous presidents have made this a major campaign promise, they failed to deliver," he said.
Image: picture alliance/dpa/AP/E. Vucci
Arab world reacts with outrage
Following Trump's announcement, thousands of Muslims worldwide participated in demonstrations protesting his controversial decision. Protesters marched in the streets, burned flags and shouted anti-Israel slogans in countries including Iraq, Turkey, Egypt, Malaysia, Indonesia and Indian-controlled Kashmir.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/A. Gharabli
Protests break out in Europe
The protests soon reached Europe. In Germany, on December 8, 2017, mostly Muslim demonstrators attended a rally near the US embassy at Berlin's Brandenburg Gate, waving Palestinian flags. The German government was among those warning against Trump's move.
Image: Getty Images/S. Gallup
UN rejects Trump's Jerusalem declaration
On December 21, 2017, an emergency session of the United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution condemning US President Donald Trump's decision to name Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. A total of 128 countries voted in favor of the measure, while nine voted against it and 35 countries abstained. The vote came after the US vetoed a UN Security Council resolution on Jerusalem.
Image: picture alliance/dpa/AP/M. Lennihan
US doubles down on Jerusalem embassy promise
On February 23, the US State Department said it would hasten the relocation of the embassy to Jerusalem. "The opening will coincide with Israel's 70th anniversary," State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said. The anniversary falls on May 14. During a visit to Jerusalem in January, US Vice President Mike Pence had said he did not expect the move to be complete before the end of 2019.
Image: Reuters/A. Schalit
First road signs for new US embassy go up
On May 7, Israeli authorities put up the first road signs pointing to the US embassy in Jerusalem. The signs were put up on the southern side of the city by the US consulate. Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat hung the first sign. In a statement, he said: "This is not a dream, it's reality. Jerusalem is the eternal capital of the Jewish people, and the world is beginning to recognize this fact."
