Palestinians have voiced fury over Donald Trump's reported plans to declare Jerusalem the capital city of Israel and have said the Middle East peace process was "finished".

The decision to move Israel's US embassy to the disputed city, expected to be announced on Wednesday evening, would "destroy" hopes for a two-state solution, Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah said.

Palestinian politician Hanan Ashrawi said there was "no way" US-brokered talks, which for decades have sought unsuccessfully to decide how separate Israeli and Palestinian states might coexist, could continue in the wake of the news.

"The peace process is finished," she said. "They have already pre-empted the outcome. They cannot take us for granted."

Image: President Trump and Pope Francis met in May

Palestinians living in Jerusalem voiced dismay at Trump's anticipated plan to move the embassy from Tel Aviv to the contested city, but some were not surprised.


"Even the little hope that people had to reach peace with Israel, Trump came and destroyed it," Jawad Siam, an activist living in east Jerusalem, told Sky News.

Both Israelis and Palestinians claim Jerusalem as their capital, and its status is marked as a final issue to be decided in a peace agreement.

Israel has controlled west Jerusalem since 1948, but after the 1967 war annexed the east of the city and occupied the West Bank, staking a claim beyond internationally accepted borders in what was widely regarded as a violation of international law.

Palestinians want to retain control over part of the city in a final agreement, and accuse Israeli authorities of changing the reality on the ground by building settlements in the east of the city and making life difficult for its Arab population.

:: Why does Donald Trump want to move the US embassy in Israel?

Image: A general view of the skyline of the old city of Jerusalem

Jerusalem's divisive significance is secured by millennia of history and religion.

It is regarded as the centre of the Jewish faith, where the biblical King David built a city around the ancient and holy Temple Mount. Many Israelis, and the country's current government, regard it as an eternal and undivided capital.

East Jerusalem is predominantly Palestinian, home to Islam's third holiest site, the Haram el Sharif, as well as sacred Christian churches and more than 300,000 Palestinians, who make up nearly 40% of Jerusalem's population.

Image: Donald Trump visited Jerusalem in May 2017

US officials, speaking on condition of anonymity before the expected announcement, said the decision was an acknowledgement of the "historic and current" reality in the region rather than a political statement.

Israel welcomed news of the apparent plan to relocate the embassy.

"Each day there are very significant manifestations of our historic national identity - but today especially so," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Facebook.

Global leaders voiced concern over the proposals, with many condemning the news.

Pope Francis called on "all to respect the city's status quo, in accordance with the relevant UN resolutions", while Prime Minister Theresa May said that Jerusalem should be shared between Israel and a future Palestinian state.

Image: Israeli moves toward the Haram el Sharif have led to protests

Daniel Seidemann, a lawyer and writer based in Jerusalem, told Sky News an embassy move would serve the peace process with a "death certificate" and offer "nothing to replace it".

"If what we are now seeing is the US wading in and adopting the Israeli position this is clearly something that disqualifies it from any role of mediator and broker," he said.

"Jerusalem will not be more united. This will deprive Palestinians living under occupation of hope."

The Arab world responded to President Trump's reported plan with fierce criticism, and media condemned the move as cities across the region braced for protests.

Turkish foreign minister Mevlet Cavusoglu said the "whole world is against" a move, calling it a "grave mistake" that would bring "chaos and instability".

Jordan's King Abdullah said the "the decision will have serious implications that will undermine efforts to resume the peace process and will provoke Muslims and Christians alike."

In the UK, Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said there were no plans to move Britain's embassy to the city and expressed "concern" at the reports.