40 Palestinian protesters gunned down by Israeli forces on Friday, Palestinian medics said, as thousands converged on Gaza’s border with Israel and set fire to mounds of tires to launch a second week of demonstrations.
Twenty Palestinians have killed and witnessed for several injuries since the demonstrations near the heavily guarded Gaza border fence began on March 30, the latest a man who died in a Gaza hospital on Friday of gunshot wounds suffered on the first day of protests.
The demonstrators are pressing for a right of return to what is now Israel for refugees – and their descendants – from the 1948 war surrounding the country’s creation. Refugees comprise most of the 2 million population of Israeli-blockaded Gaza, which is ruled by the Islamist militant movement Hamas.
“I, like everyone around here, am coming to liberate their land, Hekam Kuhail (60), told Reuters, flashing a v-for-victory sign and having her photograph taken near the border.
With black tire smoke and Israeli tear gas rising into the air, Palestinian youths used T-shirts, cheap medical masks and perfume to try and defend themselves. Israel was also in an attempt to distinguish burning tires with fire hoses from its side of the border.
The Israeli military has stationed sharpshooters on its side of the frontier to deter Palestinians from trying to break through the fence into Israeli territory. Militants were reasoned to killed most lives, according to Israel.
Post Your Comments