Former prime minister Tony Abbott has called for Australia to move its Israel embassy to Jerusalem, following the controversial switch by the United States.

More than 50 Palestinians were killed overnight in protests on the Gaza border after President Donald Trump officially shifted the US embassy.

Mr Abbott has also tweeted his support for Australia to follow suit.

Tear gas rains down on protesters in Gaza. Picture: EPA (AAP)

Palestinian protesters carry an injured man who was shot by Israeli troops during a deadly protest at the Gaza Strip's border with Israel (AAP)

"The US embassy is now in West Jerusalem, which has been Israel's capital for nearly 70 years," Mr Abbott said.

"Australia should consider following Trump's move."

The Australian embassy is currently in the coastal city of Tel Aviv.

In a show of anger fuelled by the US embassy move, protesters set tyres on fire, sending plumes of black smoke into the air, and hurled firebombs and stones toward Israeli troops across the border.

It marks the deadliest day of violence there since a devastating 2014 cross-border war.

White House senior advisors Jared Kushner (C) and Ivanka Trump (R) arrive for the opening ceremony at the US consulate (AAP)

Ivanka Trump unveils the plaque bearing her father's name. Picture: AAP (AAP)

The White House has placed responsibility for the deaths in Gaza on Hamas, a Palestinian militant Islamist group.

White House spokesman Raj Shah was responding to reports of Israeli soldiers shooting and killing at dozens of Palestinians during mass protests along the Gaza border on Monday.

It's been the deadliest day there since a devastating 2014 cross-border war.

Shah says that "Israel has the right to defend itself" and is blaming Hamas for the "dire situation."

He's also calling Monday "a great day for Israel and the United States."

Trump's daughter Ivanka and son-in-law Jared Kushner, along with Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin, led the ceremonies for the opening of the new embassy.

Palestinian protesters burn tires near the Israeli border fence, east of Khan Younis, in the Gaza Strip (AAP)

A Palestine rioter wearing an Anonymous mask and bearing rocks risks his life. Picture: EPA (AAP)

Also on hand were Republican Senators Ted Cruz of Texas and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina.

In a Fox News interview that made no reference to the climbing death toll, Mnuchin said Trump is "taking action" and "making difficult decisions" and "not just kicking the can down the road."

The relocation of the embassy from Tel Aviv has infuriated the Palestinians.

The Israeli military said its troops had come under fire, and accused protesters of trying to break through the border fence. It said troops shot and killed three Palestinians who were trying to plant a bomb.

The Hamas-led protest in Gaza was meant to be the biggest yet in a weeks long campaign against a decade-old blockade of the territory. The march was also directed at the inauguration of the US Embassy in Jerusalem later Monday. The relocation of the embassy from Tel Aviv, a key campaign promise of President Donald Trump, has infuriated the Palestinians, who seek east Jerusalem as a future capital.

A woman walks through smoke at the Gaza protests on the Israel border ahead of the US Embassy opening in Jerusalem. (AP) (AP)

Palestinian protesters chant slogans as they burn tires during a protest on the Gaza Strip's border with Israel. (AP)

"A great day for Israel!" Trump tweeted early on Monday local time.

Iran's foreign minister is calling today's opening of the US Embassy in Jerusalem "a day of great shame."

Mohammad Javad Zarif on Monday wrote on Twitter: "Israeli regime massacres countless Palestinians in cold blood as they protest in the world's largest open air prison.

Meanwhile, Trump celebrates move of US illegal embassy and his Arab collaborators move to divert attention."

Israel has said South Africa has recalled its ambassador amid the violence.

Israel's Foreign Ministry spokesman Emmanuel Nahshon said the ambassador was recalled for consultations. He said that Sisa Ngombane returns home Monday night.

South Africa's relations with Israel have long been frosty. The South African government is a fervent supporter of the Palestinian cause.

The diplomatic move came after 52 Palestinians were killed by Israeli fire along the Gaza border in mass protests led by the Islamic militant group Hamas that rules the territory.

Israel says the level of violence at the border was "unprecedented" and that some Palestinians opened fire at troops and planted explosives.

Monday marked the biggest showdown in recent weeks between Israel's military and Gaza's Hamas rulers along the volatile border

The protests mark the culmination of a campaign, led by Hamas and fueled by despair among Gaza's 2 million people, to break the decade-old border blockade of the territory imposed by Israel and Egypt after Hamas seized control of Gaza in 2007.

Since weekly border marches began in late March, 79 Palestinian protesters have been killed and more than 2300 wounded by Israeli army fire. Hamas said four members, including three security men, were among the dead.

Ismail Radwan, a senior Hamas figure, said the mass border protests against Israel will continue "until the rights of the Palestinian people are achieved."

"Moving the US Embassy to Jerusalem will be a disaster on the American administration and a black day in the history of the American people because they are partners with the occupation and its aggression against the Palestinian people," he added.

People walk past signs in Jerusalem, that show support for US President Donald Trump's decision to move the country's Embassy to the city. (AAP)

Hamas leaders have suggested a border breach is possible Monday, something Israel has vowed to prevent at any cost.

Kuwait is seeking an emergency UN Security Council meeting on the violence along the Gaza border.

Palestinian Ambassador Riyad Mansour urged the council Monday to condemn the killings. Speaking to reporters, Mansour called the Israel military response a "savage onslaught" and an "atrocity."

The council held an emergency meeting when the protests began in March. Members then urged restraint on both sides but couldn't agree on any action or joint message.

Monday's opening was attended by Trump's daughter Ivanka and son-in-law Jared Kushner, who both serve as White House advisers.

Kushner leads the Trump Mideast team.

A woman holds a Palestinian flag as a protester burns tires near the Israeli border fence, east of Khan Younis, in the Gaza Strip (AAP)

Palestinian protesters burn tires near the Israeli border fence, east of Khan Younis, in the Gaza Strip, Monday, May 14, 2018. Thousands of Palestinians are protesting near Gaza's border with Israel. (AAP)

Most of the casualties were in the southern Gaza towns of Khan Younis and Rafah. Israeli forces were firing volleys of tear gas to disperse the crowds, and the sound of heavy gunfire could be heard.

Sirens were constantly wailing as the wounded were carried to nearby ambulances. Groups of young activists repeatedly approached the fence, but were quickly scattered by gunfire and tear gas.

Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus, an Israeli military spokesman, said the army had set up additional "layers" of security in and around communities near the border to defend Israeli civilians.

He said there already had been several "significant attempts" to break through the fence.

"Even if the fence is breached, we will be able to protect Israeli civilians from attempts to massacre or kidnap or kill them," he said.

With Israel and Hamas digging in, there is growing concern about large numbers of casualties.

Palestinian protesters hurl stones at Israeli troops during a protest on the Gaza Strip's border with Israel (AAP)

The timing of Monday's events was deeply symbolic, both to Israel and the Palestinians.

The US said it chose the date to coincide with the 70th anniversary of Israel's establishment.

But it also marks the anniversary of what Palestinians call their "nakba," or catastrophe, a reference to the uprooting of hundreds of thousands who fled or were expelled from what is now Israel during the 1948 war surrounding Israel's independence.

A majority of Gaza's two million people are descendants of refugees, and the protests have been billed as the "Great March of Return" to long-lost homes in what is now Israel.

In one of the border areas east of Gaza City, Mohammed Hamami, a 40-year-old civil servant, joined a crowd of hundreds of protesters, along with his mother and five children.

"Today we are here to send a message to Israel and its allies that we will never give up on our land," he said.

Preparations for the opening ceremony at the US consulate. (AAP)

Ivanka Trump attended the official opening of the US Embassy in Jerusalem today. (AP) (AP)

"We will cross the border and impose new realities like the reality Trump imposed in Jerusalem," he added, referring to President Donald Trump's decision in December to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital and then move the US Embassy there.

Some protesters moved to within about 150 metres of the border fence. A reporter saw two men who tried to advance further being shot in the legs by Israeli troops.

Clouds of black smoke from burning tires rose into the air. Earlier Monday, Israeli drones dropping incendiary material had pre-emptively set ablaze some of the tires collected in advance by activists.

Protesters have used the thick smoke as cover against Israeli snipers perched on high sand berms on the other side of the border. The army accuses Hamas of using the protests as cover to plan or carry out attacks.

Leaflets dropped over Gaza by army jets warned that those approaching the border "jeopardize" their lives. The warning said the army is "prepared to face all scenarios and will act against every attempt to damage the security fence or harm IDF soldiers or Israeli civilians."

In Jerusalem, top Trump administration officials attended events linked to the inauguration of the embassy later Monday.

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said that it was a US "national security priority" to move the embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

Trump's decision to go forward with a campaign promise to move the American embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem was welcomed by Israel and condemned by the Palestinians. Previous presidents had signed a waiver postponing the move, citing national security.

Israel captured east Jerusalem in the 1967 Mideast war and annexed it in a move not recognized by the international community.

The Palestinians seek the city's eastern half as the capital of a future state.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas cut ties with the Trump administration and declared it unfit to remain in its role as the sole mediator in peace talks.

Saeb Erekat, a senior Abbas aide, blasted the Trump administration Monday, saying Trump had violated a promise to hold off on moving the embassy to give peace talks a chance and that his administration is "based on lies."

Erekat said the Trump administration has "become part of the problem, not part of the solution."

Administration officials have dismissed Palestinian criticism, portraying the embassy opening as an essential step toward an eventual Israeli-Palestinian peace deal. However, they have not said how they will move forward without the Palestinians.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised Trump's "bold decision" in upending decades of US policy by recognising Jerusalem as Israel's capital. "It's the right thing to do," a smiling Netanyahu told the jubilant crowd at a reception in Jerusalem late Sunday.

Although Trump has said his declaration does not set the final borders of the city, his recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital has been perceived by both Israel and the Palestinians as taking Israel's side in the most sensitive issue in their conflict.

Only two countries, Guatemala and Paraguay, have said they will follow suit. Most of the world maintains embassies in Tel Aviv, saying the Jerusalem issue must first be resolved.