Israeli forces injure 5 Palestinians in weekly Gaza protests

April 23, 2016 10:37 A.M. (Updated: April 23, 2016 4:51 P.M.)


GAZA (Ma'an) -- Five Palestinians were injured when clashes broke out across the Gaza Strip on Friday night after Israeli forces attempted to suppress weekly protests, Gaza’s Ministry of Health said.
One Palestinian was injured with live fire, and two suffered from excessive tear gas inhalation near the Nahal Oz crossing in the northeastern Gaza Strip. Near the Erez crossing in the northern Gaza Strip, two Palestinians suffered from excessive tear gas inhalation when Israeli forces attempted to suppress a protest there.An Israeli army spokesperson told Ma’an they did not have information on clashes in the Gaza Strip Friday evening.Also on Friday, a Palestinian teenager was wounded by a rubber-coated steel bullet and dozens others suffered excessive tear gas inhalation when Israeli forces dispersed weekly protests across the occupied West Bank.The clashes came amidst tightened security measures implemented by the Israeli authorities for the Jewish holiday of Passover. All crossings in the Gaza Strip and occupied West Bank were closed to Palestinians beginning midnight Thursday, in effect until midnight Saturday.Palestinians in the Gaza Strip crowd near the borders with Israel every Friday to show solidarity with what Palestinians in besieged coastal enclave have termed the “Jerusalem Intifada” taking place in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.Nearly 30 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces in the Gaza Strip since the unrest spread in October, the majority shot dead during clashes on the Gaza-Israel border.More than 1,300 Palestinians have been injured by Israeli forces since the start of this year, the majority during clashes that broke out with the Israeli military during protests in the occupied West Bank, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.Earlier this month, the US accused Israel of an "excessive use of force" against Palestinians, amounting to a violation of human rights, in its annual report of global human rights abuses.

Israeli forces injure 3 Palestinians in Friday clashes

April 15, 2016 11:08 P.M. (Updated: April 16, 2016 11:04 A.M.)

 

 

BETHLEHEM (MA'AN) -- At least three Palestinians were injured by Israeli forces amid clashes across the Palestinian territory Friday, according to Palestinian and Israeli sources.Medics told Ma’an Israeli forces shot and injured two Palestinians with live fire in eastern Gaza City.An Israeli army spokesperson confirmed that two hits were made when clashes broke out after dozens of "rioters" attempted to "damage the security fence and infiltrate the buffer zone." Israeli forces responded by "firing shots toward the instigators,” she added.In the southern occupied West Bank district of Hebron, an Israeli army vehicle ran over and injured a Palestinian teenager during clashes in al-Arrub refugee camp. Local sources said an Israeli army vehicle ran over Muhammad Nidhal Abu Ghazi,15, before youths took him in a private car to a hospital in Hebron in moderate condition. Several people suffered from tear gas inhalation and were treated on the scene. The clashes in al-Arroub come after a Palestinian was shot and killed by Israeli forces Thursday at the entrance of camp in the Hebron district, after he reportedly attempted to attack a soldier with an ax.Two Palestinians were injured by Israeli forces in separate incidents in the area later the same evening.

Palestinians in the Gaza Strip crowd near the borders with Israel every Friday to show solidarity with what Palestinians in besieged coastal enclave have termed the “Jerusalem Intifada” taking place in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.

More than 1,400 Palestinians have been injured by Israeli forces since the start of this year, the majority during clashes that broke out with the Israeli military during protests in the occupied West Bank, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

3 Palestinians in Gaza shot, injured in Nakba Day protest

May 15, 2015 3:09 P.M. (Updated: May 16, 2015 12:47 P.M.)

GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Three Palestinians were injured by live fire during a Nakba Day demonstration in the Gaza Strip on Friday, witnesses said.Locals told Ma'an that Israeli soldiers opened fire on peaceful demonstrators east of Gaza City, hitting three men in the legs.Dozens of Palestinians were taking part in the march to commemorate the 67th anniversary of the mass displacment of Palestinians during Israel's creation.An Israeli army spokeswoman told Ma'an there were "about 100 rioters in the area" during the incident, confirming three direct hits by live fire after Israeli forces opened fire at the lower extremities of five individuals who approached the "security fence," and did not halt on order of the Israeli forces.

 

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 PCHR

 

At approximately 13:20, Israeli forces stationed along the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel opened fire at a group of young men who were participating in a demonstration to commemorate the 67^th anniversary of Nakbah near Nahal 'Oz crossing to the east of al-Shija'iyah neighbourhood in the east of Gaza City.  As a result, three of them were wounded, and the medical sources at Shifa Hospital described the injury of one of them as serious.  He was transferred to the Israeli hospital to receive medical treatment.

The wounded persons were identified as:

1. Muhanad Mohammed ShehdahKhader Heles (21), who was wounded with a bullet to the right thigh and transferred to receive medical treatment in Israel;

2. AmjadAnwar Salman Shallah (20),who was wounded by a bullet to the right leg; and

3. Mohammed Yosri Hasan al-Hattab (22), whowas wounded with a bullet to the right leg.

 

 

 

Israeli forces shoot Palestinian east of Khan Younis

(MaanImages/File)

 

GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- An Israeli soldier on Friday shot a Palestinian man in the lower extremities during a protest in southern Gaza, an army spokeswoman told Ma'an.

An Israeli military spokeswoman said that during a protest at the border east of Khan Younis, a Palestinian demonstrator attempted to climb the border fence.

Israel soldiers fired warning shots in the air, and afterwards fired at the protester's lower extremities, she said.

"A hit was confirmed," she added.

The severity of the protester's injury was not immediately clear.

Israeli forces shoot, kill Palestinian woman in southern Gaza

Published yesterday (updated) 01/03/2014 17:36

 

(MaanImages)

 

GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- A Palestinian woman was shot dead by Israeli forces in the southern Gaza Strip late Friday, witnesses and medics said.

Witnesses said 57-year-old Aminah Atiyeh Qudeih was shot and killed by Israeli forces east of Khan Younis when she approached the separation barrier between Israel and the Gaza Strip.

Ambulances were not allowed access to the area at the time, and when they reached the area Saturday morning, Qudeih was found dead, witnesses said.

The woman's relatives told AP she was mentally ill, and assumed she wandered toward the border by mistake.

An Israeli army spokeswoman said a suspect approached the border fence east of Khan Younis late Friday.

After telling the suspect to stop and firing warning shots into the air, "Israeli forces fired toward the lower extremities," the spokeswoman said.

"Hits were confirmed," she said.

The site of the woman's death saw demonstrations Friday, and Israeli soldiers fired tear gas canisters and warning shots into the air. No injuries were reported.

Also Friday, a man in Beit Lahiya the northern Gaza Strip was shot in the leg by Israeli forces during a similar protest.

The man, who is in his twenties but has not been identified by name, was shot in the leg near Beit Lahiya and taken to hospital with moderate injuries.

On Feb. 13, Israeli forces killed Ibrahim Suleiman Mansour, 26, after shooting him in the head during a protest near the border east of Gaza City.

Israeli forces shoot man near Gaza border

Published Friday 28/02/2014 (updated) 02/03/2014 14:42

(MaanImages/file)

GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Israeli forces shot and injured a Palestinian man on Friday during a protest against Israeli restrictions in border areas.

An unidentified man in his twenties was shot in the leg near Beit Lahiya and taken to hospital with moderate injuries.

He was taking part in a demonstration against Israel's "security buffer zone", which extends between 500 meters and 1500 meters into the Gaza, effectively turning local farms into no-go zones.

An Israeli army spokeswoman said dozens of Palestinians gathered in different prohibited areas near the Gaza border.

"After exhausting all efforts, IDF personnel opened fire and wounded one of main instigators," she added.

According to UNOCHA, 17 percent of Gaza's total land area and 35 percent of its agricultural land were within the buffer zone as of 2010, directly affecting the lives and livelihoods of more than 100,000 Gazans.

On Feb. 13, Israeli forces killed Ibrahim Suleiman Mansour, 26, after shooting him in the head during a protest near the border east of Gaza City.

3 injured in Gaza clashes on massacre anniversary

Published Tuesday 25/02/2014 (updated) 27/02/2014 11:27

 

(MaanImages/File)

 

GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Three Palestinian men were injured and others suffered from excessive tear gas inhalation during clashes with Israeli forces east of Gaza City on Tuesday, an official said.

Gaza Health Ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qidra said that three people in Nahal Oz were injured, one of whom was a journalist.

The three were taken to the hospital with moderate injuries, al-Qidra said.

Clashes broke out after dozens of people from the Intifada Youth Coalition rallied to demonstrate on the anniversary of the Ibrahimi Mosque massacre.

An Israeli army spokeswoman said that forces fired at Palestinians who approached a security fence despite instructions from Israeli forces to turn back. She said they identified direct hits.

On Feb. 25, 1994, a Jewish extremist entered Hebron's Ibrahimi Mosque and opened fire, killing 29 worshipers and injuring 125.

Video and photos: Israeli bullets and tear gas target popular resistance in Gaza

25th February 2014 | International Solidarity Movement, Charlie Andreasson | Gaza, Occupied Palestine

(Photo by Charlie Andreasson)

At al-Shifa hospital Mohammed Helles, age 14, is laying in a coma with an uncertain outcome after he was shot, with what appeared, to be a tear-gas canister in the head and parts of it penetrated his brain. He had an operation, but fragments are still left. Kamal hospital reported thirteen injures, from both gunshot wounds in the legs and tear-gas canisters.
Friday’s demonstration on the hillside east of Jabaliya gathered about 400 people, mostly young men in their late teens. Protests against land seizure, mixed with dissent at the consequences of the occupation such as a broken economy, soaring unemployment and loss of hope for the future, were met by tear gas and live ammunition, with ambulances shuttling back and forth .

 

(Photo by Charlie Andreasson)

Over the slope an Israeli drone hovered at a low altitude, but at an even lower altitude two Palestinian kites floated close over the fence. Cheers and applause broke out when one tore and three Israeli soldiers rushed after it. But it was also the only thing protesters had over which to rejoice. The protests will probably not change the occupying power’s policy towards the Palestinian people. According to figures from OCHA, 17 percent of the Gaza Strip, including 35 percent of its farmland, is unavailable due to the Israeli-established “buffer zone.” More than 100,000 people are directly affected, and the protests against the occupying power, as well as its military response to them, are likely to continue.

(Photo by Charlie Andreasson)

(Photo by Charlie Andreasson)

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13 injured as Israeli forces open fire on Gaza border

Published Friday 21/02/2014 (updated) 23/02/2014 10:23

GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Thirteen people were injured after Israeli forces opened fire on Palestinian demonstrators east of Jabaliya in the northern Gaza Strip on Friday.

Dozens of others suffered from excessive tear gas inhalation as Israeli forces violently dispersed the group, which was protesting against the confiscation of lands near the border by Israeli authorities.

Spokesman for the Gaza Strip Ministry of Health Ashraf al-Qidra told Ma'an that 13 people were injured, including a 12-year-old child who was seriously injured.

They were all taken to Kamal Adwan Hospital in Beit Lahia.

An Israeli army spokesman did not immediately return calls seeking comment.

Israeli forces frequently shoot at farmers and other civilians inside the Gaza Strip if they approach large swathes of land near the border that the Israeli military has deemed off-limits to Palestinians.

The "security buffer zone" extends between 500 meters and 1500 meters into the Strip, effectively turning local farms into no-go zones.

According to UNOCHA, 17 percent of Gaza's total land area and 35 percent of its agricultural land were within the buffer zone as of 2010, directly affecting the lives and livelihoods of more than 100,000 Gazans.

Israeli forces shoot dead Gaza protester, injure another

Published Friday 24/01/2014 (updated) 27/01/2014 09:47

Palestinians carry a fellow protester wounded during clashes with
Israeli forces near east of Gaza City on January 17, 2014.
(AFP/Mohammed Abed)

 

GAZA STRIP (Ma'an) -- Israeli forces shot dead one Palestinian and injured another on Friday during a protest east of Jabaliya in the northern Gaza Strip.

Spokesman for the Gaza Ministry of Health Ashraf al-Qidra, said that 20-year-old Bilal Samer Oweidah died after being shot dead in the chest by Israeli forces near the border.

Owiedah was among a group of Palestinians who had gathered near the border to protest the buffer zone imposed by Israel, al-Qidra said.

Another Palestinian was moderately injured when Israeli forces opened fire on the protesters, he said.

Locals said that Oweidah was taken to Kamal Adwan Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

An Israeli army spokeswoman said that "Palestinians gathered in a prohibited area near the border," and began "hurling rocks and burning tires" towards Israeli forces.

She added that Israeli forces sought to break up the protest using "riot dispersal means," but "after all efforts were exhausted, they fired towards two main instigators and two hits were identified."

The Gaza Strip has been under a severe economic blockade imposed by the State of Israel since 2006.

Israeli forces frequently shoot at farmers and other civilians inside the Gaza Strip if they approach large swathes of land near the border that the Israeli military has deemed off-limits to Palestinians.

The "security buffer zone" extends between 500 meters and 1500 meters into the Strip, effectively turning local farms into no-go zones.

According to UNOCHA, 17 percent of Gaza's total land area and 35 percent of its agricultural land were within the buffer zone as of 2010, directly affecting the lives and livelihoods of more than 100,000 Gazans.

Israel troops open fire on Gaza protesters, 2 injured

 

Palestinians carry a fellow protester wounded during clashes with
Israeli forces near the Nahal Oz border crossing, east of Gaza City
on January 17, 2014. (AFP/Mohammed Abed)

 

 

From Ma'an website

 

GAZA CITY (AFP) -- The Israeli army fired live rounds and tear gas at protesters near the border fence in the Gaza Strip on Friday, wounding two Palestinians, medics and an AFP correspondent said.

Troops fired at some 300 demonstrators who were protesting against Israel's destruction of farmland for its 300-meter buffer zone, the correspondent said.

Two protesters were moderately wounded and taken to hospital, Gaza's health ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qidra told AFP.

Israel's army was "unaware of the incident," a spokeswoman said.

The demonstrators were marching near the border fence in support of Palestinian farmers, whose citrus trees they said had been uprooted to make way for the Israeli-controlled buffer zone that runs along the border.

"Israel destroyed most of our citrus trees ... (and) still prevents us from importing or exporting any products," said a statement from protest organizers the Gaza Youth Coalition.

The statement deplored "daily Israeli attacks" against farmers near the border.

Israel allows "civilian access on foot to areas up to 100 meters from the perimeter fence for agricultural purposes only, and vehicular access to a distance of 300 meters," according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

Israeli soldiers often fire at Palestinians who walk near border areas.

Israeli air strikes wounded a woman and four children near Gaza City overnight Wednesday to Thursday, medical sources said, with Israel confirming it had struck in retaliation for rocket fire.

7 Palestinians injured in clashes with Israeli forces on Gaza border

Published yesterday (updated) 28/12/2013 11:18

 

(MaanImages/file)

GAZA (Ma'an) -- Seven people suffered from excessive tear gas inhalation in clashes between Palestinians and Israeli forces east of Jabaliya refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip on Friday.

Witnesses told Ma'an reported that Israeli forces fired tear gas heavily at Palestinian youths, and the fumes reached residences in the Izbet Abed Rabbo area east of the camp.

Medics said that two women were among the injured, and that they were taken to Kamal Adwan hospital.

Tensions have been high along the border with Israel in the Gaza Strip recently, as Israeli forces have severely escalated attacks against Palestinian civilians in the area, killing two and injuring 14.

Palestinian militants inside the strip have launched increasing numbers of rockets into southern Israel, which have all landed in open areas.

On Thursday, Dec. 20, Israel forces shot dead a Palestinian man who was collecting plastic and metal scraps near the border, while his brother was injured.

On the same day, four other Palestinians were also shot near the borders of the Gaza Strip in separate incidents.

On Tuesday, when a Palestinian sniper shot an Israeli Defense Ministry employee working at the border fence, Israel responded with air strikes against the Gaza Strip, killing 3-year-old, Hala Abu Sbeikha while she was playing in the yard of her home in al-Maghazi refugee camp, and injuring her mother and brother.

Four other Gazans were also injured in a series of Israeli attacks on that day.

Since then, two more Palestinians have been injured in Israeli airstrikes.

An Egyptian mediated ceasefire agreement was reached in November 2012 between Palestinian factions and Israel to end over a week of fighting which left over 170 Palestinians dead and thousands injured. Six Israelis were also killed during the fighting.

Since the agreement, Israeli forces have shot dozens of Gazans in border areas, and have launched frequent incursions.

The Gaza Strip has been under a severe economic blockade imposed by the State of Israel since 2006.

Gazan farmers and fisherfolk call for food sovereignty and an end to Israeli attacks

20th November 2013 | Corporate Watch, Tom Anderson and Therezia Cooper | Gaza, Occupied Palestine

Palestinians demonstrate outside UNSCO – 20/11/13. (Photo by Corporate Watch)

On 20th November 2013, hundreds of farmers and fisherfolk gathered outside the United Nations Special Coordinator for the Middle East (UNSCO) in Gaza City to demand that the international community take action to prevent the Israeli military’s attacks against them and to end the occupation.
One fisherman told Corporate Watch, “We are only looking for our daily food and a livelihood. We want to ask the UN to pressure the Israeli occupation not to attack us. We are just trying to earn a living for our families.”

(Photo by Corporate Watch)

Saad El-Deen Ziada, Farmer and Fishermen Coordinator for the Union of Agricultural Work Committees, said, “This demonstration was the start of a Palestinian and international campaign to access our lands and control our water. To achieve what we call food sovereignty.
“We want to send a message to the international community and the General Secretary of the United Nations that it is time to stop the Israeli attacks against Palestinian farmers and to activate human rights law. International human rights law gives us the chance to sanction the occupation government and to support the Palestinians to stay on their land. The international community must deal with the situation as a political issue and not a humanitarian one. First of all we need to end the Israeli occupation. We condemn the international community’s silence at the crimes we are subjected to.”
Several of the speakers at the demonstration also emphasised the importance of the international campaign for boycott, divestment and sanctions against Israeli apartheid.
A delegation from the demonstration delivered a letter to a representative of Ban Ki-moon articulating the protesters’ demands.

(Photo by Corporate Watch)

(Photo by Corporate Watch)

Palestinians and internationals deliver a message to the international community – 20/11/13. (Photo by Corporate Watch)

(Photo by Corporate Watch)

Photos of Israeli tear gas canisters fired at Palestinian demonstrators in the Gaza ‘buffer zone’

17th November 2013 | Corporate Watch, Tom Anderson and Therezia Cooper | Gaza, Occupied Palestine

Palestinians demonstrate in the buffer zone East of Gaza City on the anniversary of the signing of the Balfour Declaration. (Photo by ISM – Gaza team)

On 2nd November 2013 Israeli forces fired tear gas at Palestinians demonstrating in the Gaza buffer zone East of Gaza City, by the Nahal Oz checkpoint. A report of the demonstration by an eyewitness can be viewed here. Pictures of one of the canisters fired at the activists are shown below.
Corporate Watch has written several articles about Israel’s use of tear gas in the West Bank. Some of our previous work can be found here and here.
This canister looks a little different to the ones that we have seen in the West Bank, particularly because it is encased in a hard plastic shell. We do not have any evidence to determine which company supplied these canisters to the Israeli military. However, we know that tear gas canisters manufactured by Combined Systems (CSI) in the US and Defense Technologies, previously owned by the British arms giant BAE systems and now owned by the US firm Safariland, have been used by the Israeli police and army in the past.
It is imperative that BDS campaigners take action against companies selling tear gas to Israel.
Combined Systems can be contacted at:
388 Kinsman Road, Jamestown, PA 16134
Safariland can be contacted at:
Ontario Headquaters:
Safariland
3120 E. Mission Blvd.
Ontario, CA 91761
Jacksonville Headquarters:
Safariland
13386 International Parkway
Jacksonville, FL 32218

Gas canister fired at Palestinian demonstrators in the buffer zone on 2/11/13. (Photo by Corporate Watch)

The three separate pieces of the canister fired at Palestinian demonstrators in the buffer zone – 2/11/13. (Photo by Corporate Watch)

Photos: Gaza march on eve of Balfour anniversary met with Israeli tear gas

2nd November 2013 | International Solidarity Movement, Gaza Team | Gaza, Occupied Palestine

(Photo by Charlie Andreasson)

Israeli forces fired tear gas to disperse a march in the “buffer zone” east of Gaza City, by the Nahal Oz checkpoint, on Friday afternoon.
The demonstration, which began at Shujaya square in the city after Friday prayers, was organized by the Intifada Youth Coalition to protest today’s anniversary of the Balfour Declaration.
In the 2 November 1917 letter, Arthur James Balfour, foreign secretary of the United Kingdom, then occupying Palestine, told Walter Rothschild, a leader in the British Zionist movement, that the British government “view[ed] with favour the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, and will use their best endeavours to facilitate the achievement of this object.”

(Photo by Joe Catron)

“We went to the buffer zone to tell the occupation that this date is unforgettable after 96 years,” said Majed Abusalama, a Coalition spokesman.
“Every generation that comes will remember it  again, and remember every Israeli crime against unarmed Palestinians. Yes, it is our land, the buffer zone is for Palestinians, and we should farm it.”
Demonstrators overcome by the effects of tear gas were treated by Palestinian Red Crescent Society ambulances waiting outside the “buffer zone.”

(Photo by Joe Catron)

“The Israeli response to our unarmed protest appeared from the start, when we were about 800 meters away from the fence,” Abusalama said. “They shot tear gas directly at us.”
Protesters kept trying to reach the checkpoint, which Israel closed at the beginning of 2010, retreating only after several hours of tear-gas fire.
The event followed a 27 September march organized by the Coalition to commemorate the thirteenth anniversary of the second Intifada and protest Israeli incursions into the al-Aqsa mosque in occupied east Jerusalem.

(Photo by Charlie Andreasson)

(Photo by Charlie Andreasson)

(Photo by Joe Catron)

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(Photo by Charlie Andreasson)

(Photo by Charlie Andreasson)