The American State of Department announced on Friday it will officially move its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, describing the move as a “historic step.”

Spokeswoman of the State Department Heather Nauert said that "The opening will coincide with Israel's 70th anniversary”, which falls on May 14.

Among Arab communities the date of May 15 commemorates the expulsion and displacement of Palestinians in Nakba Day which translates to “Day of the Catastrophe”.

Senior Palestinian Authority official Saeb Erekat said that the announcement is a “provocation to all Arabs.”

Erekat said that the timing of the move "shows the determination of the US administration to violate international law, destroy the two-state solution, and provoke the feelings of the Palestinian people."

Hamas also condemned on the step saying it will spark confrontations in the region.

Their spokesperson Abdulatif Qanu’a said that “such a move will either give legitimacy to Israeli occupation or change Jerusalem’s history.”

In a highly controversial step, Trump announced earlier in December that he will be moving the American embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, recognizing the city as an Israeli capital.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu thanked the American President Donald Trump for his “leadership” and “friendship”, welcoming the “long-awaited” step.

Since then, demonstrators in many Muslim countries, including Jordan, have voiced their anger and called for a fair solution for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Even though U.S. Vice President Mike Pence said earlier last month that he didn’t expect the embassy relocation to happen before the end of 2019, the move comes much earlier.