RIYADH – Saudi Arabia condemned Israeli gunfire on Monday that killed atleast 55 Palestinians and wounded hundreds of others, without mentioningthe inauguration of the controversial US embassy in Jerusalem.

“Saudi Arabia strongly condemns the Israeli occupation forces gunfireagainst unarmed Palestinian civilians which has left dozens of dead andwounded,” a Saudi foreign ministry spokesperson said.

The spokesperson, quoted by the kingdom s official SPA press agency, calledon the international community to “take responsibility and put an end tothe violence against the Palestinians”, noting Riyadh s support for the”rights of the Palestinian people”.

The spokesperson did not mention the opening of the controversial USembassy in Jerusalem, which also took place on Monday.

Saudi Arabia and Israel have no formal diplomatic relations, but their tieshave improved recently as the two close ranks with the US against theirshared enemy — Iran.

The transfer of the embassy from Tel Aviv to the divided holy city, enactedby US President Donald Trump, was condemned by the Arab summit held inSaudi Arabia on April 17.

Israeli troops opened fire on Monday as thousands of Palestiniansdemonstrated along Gaza s border with the Jewish state, protesting theinauguration the US embassy and calling for Palestinian refugees to beallowed to return to homes that are now in Israel.

In Qatar, foreign ministry spokeswoman Lulwah al-Khater strongly condemned”the massacre” of Palestinians.

Cited by Qatar s official QNA news agency, Khater called on theinternational community to take action and stop “the savage killings”. -APP/AFP