Turkey hits back at Trump with plans to open Palestine embassy in Jerusalem

Turkey's top diplomat has said it plans to open an embassy in east Jerusalem once the world recognises an independent Palestinian state.

Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Thursday that there was "serious determination" among countries that have not yet recognised Palestine to do so.

"We need to succeed in this. Once we succeed, embassies will open in the independent Palestinian state's capital, east Jerusalem," Cavusoglu said.

On Saturday, Turkey's prime minister said the country's consul in Jerusalem is acting as its embassy to the Palestinian state.

"There is no country besides Turkey which has opened a mission for Palestine at the embassy level," Binali Yildirim said.

Turkey has been one of the most vocal critics of US President Donald Trump's declaration last week that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel.

Breaking with decades of US policy, President Donald Trump also said on 6 December that he would move the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

Turkey hosted a meeting of 57 Muslim nations on Wednesday that rejected the decision and called for recognition of a Palestinian state with its capital in east Jerusalem.

But the participants did not agree any concrete measures or sanctions, with the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation riven by divisions including those between Shia Iran and the Gulf's Sunni kingpin Saudi Arabia.

Both Riyadh and its top regional ally the United Arab Emirates sent lower-level officials rather than leaders to the summit, in a possible snub for Ankara.

Israel considers the entire city to be its unified and eternal capital. It would be unlikely to allow any country to establish an embassy to Palestine there.