TEHRAN, May 14 (Xinhua) -- Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif condemned Israel's violence against Palestinian protesters on Monday.

"Israeli regime massacres countless Palestinians in cold blood as they protest in the world's largest open-air prison," Zarif tweeted.

He called Monday "a day of great shame," noting that the killing of Palestinian protesters comes as "Trump celebrates the relocation of U.S. illegal embassy and his Arab collaborators move to divert attention."

Over 40 Palestinians were killed and 900 others injured on Monday during heavy confrontations between hundreds of angry Palestinian protesters and Israeli soldiers in eastern Gaza Strip close to the border with Israel.

Organized by the National Commission of the Great March of Return in eastern Gaza Strip, the mass protests against Israel started on March 30, and are expected to peak on Tuesday, the day after the 70th anniversary of Israel's declaration of independence but marked by the Palestinians as the Nakba Day, or "Day of Catastrophe." Enditem