Palestinian officials threaten to revoke recognition of Israel if U.S. embassy shifted to Jerusalem

Senior Palestinian officials have warned that the Palestine Liberation Organisation's recognition of Israel - one of the key pillars of the moribund Oslo peace agreements - will be in danger of being revoked if U.S. President-elect Donald Trump moves the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

Moving the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem is highly contentious as it would recognise Israel's exclusive claim to the city, most of which was annexed illegally after the 1967 war. The Palestinians also see it as their future capital, reports the Guardian.

The Palestinian leadership is also calling for protests in mosques and churches on Friday and Sunday to object to the move.

Senior Palestinian negotiator Mohammed Shtayyeh said that any move to relocate the U.S. embassy would provoke a reaction.

The warning came amid increasingly stark warnings over the risk of an "explosion of violence" in the region if the US embassy is moved, and after Abbas himself wrote to Trump to reconsider, citing the dangers in the move.

In his letter Abbas told Trump that moving the embassy "will likely have [a] disastrous impact on the peace process, on the two-state solution and on the stability and security of the entire region, since Israel's decision to annex East Jerusalem contradicts with international law".

The comments came after the officials said they had been told by diplomatic contacts that Trump may be preparing to announce the relocation of the U.S .embassy during his inauguration speech on 20 January.

That fear follows the introduction of new legislation in Congress a week ago by three Republican Senators, including Ted Cruz, demanding the embassy be located in Jerusalem.

Palestinians have also been alarmed by Trump's appointment of figures who have supported Jewish settlement building in the occupied territories.

That includes Trump's proposed new ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, who has questioned the two-state solution, and most recently Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner, whose family charity has given money to one of the West Bank's most hardline settlements.