Dozens of Palestinians were shot and injured, Saturday, across the West Bank region, with at least two reported dead, including one child who died of critical injuries suffered earlier in the day, during clashes which occured near Bethlehem. Supporters from New York to London and Paris continue to march in solidarity with Gaza.WAFA correspondence is currently citing numerous confrontations between Palestinians protestors and Israeli forces, one of which occurred at a rally organized by residents of Beit Fajjar, to the south of Bethlehem.
Demonstrators chanted slogans in condemnation of the Israeli massacres on defenseless Gaza civilians which have taken place over the course of Ramadan, this month, upon which clashes erupted with Israeli troops deployed at the entrance of the town.
Forces reportedly fired live ammunition into the crowd, shooting and injuring four Palestinians, including one 14-year-old Nasri Taqatqa, who was shot in the chest and later died of his wounds.
Red Crescent ambulances rushed to the scene but were delayed by the troops before they finally managed to evacuate all victims to a nearby hospital.
To the north of Bethlehem, in the vicinity of Bilal Bin Rabah mosque, six Palestinians were injured with live ammunition, while dozens of others suffocated from teargas inhalation during similar protests and ensuing confrontations, early Saturday.
Thousands of Palestinians took part in a solidarity march with Gaza, starting at Manager Square and ending up near the mosque, which is also known as Rachel’s Tomb.
Dozens of Israeli troops were stationed at the checkpoint, ready to fire. Live ammunition and tear gas was used on demonstrators, of which six suffered serious injuries and dozens of others suffered from tear gas inhalation.
Red Crescent medics said that one protestor was shot with three bullets in the leg, chest and abdomen and suffered from heavy bleeding. He was taken to a hospital for treatment.
Five additional Palestinians were injured with live ammunition, early Saturday, during clashes with Israeli forces at the entrance of Beit Furik, to the southeast of Nablus, according to WAFA local sources.
Town residents, also rallying in protest of Israel’s military assault against the already besieged Gaza Strip, chanted slogans in protest, upon which clashes erupted with Israeli forces, also deployed at the entrance of the town. Five Palestinians were injured by live fire to their lower extremities.
Dozens of Palestinians were shot and injured, by both live fire and rubber-coated steel bullets, while hundreds of others suffocated from teargas inhalation in clashes which erupted across Hebron, as a result of the widespread solidarity marches.
Marches were organized in Ras Al-Joura, Hahul bridge, Beit ‘Inun, Sa‘ir, Zeef junction, As-Samou‘, Idhna, Al-Fawwar and Al-‘Aroub refugee camps and Beit Ummar, where Israeli troops at the entrances fired live ammunition, rubber-coated metal bullets, tear-gas canisters and concussion grenades.
Israeli undercover units, known as Mistariveem, were reportedly spotted in the clashes, according to WAFA.
Victims were quickly evacuated to Hebron hospitals.
To the north of Jenin, one Palestinian protestor was shot dead and four others were injured during clashes with Israeli forces at Al-Jalama checkpoint.
Demonstrators called for consolidating Palestinian unity and for the prosecution of Israeli officials. They also raised placards which featured the images of Palestinian children and elderly who have been killed during the ongoing Israeli assaults.
The slain Palestinian was identified as Basem Sati Abu Al-Rub, 19, from Qabatiya, to the southwest of Jenin. Among the injured was Jenin-based WAFA correspondent Thaer Abu Baker, who was transferred to a hospital for treatment with the rest of the victims.
Furthermore, in Qarawat Bani Hassan, to the west of Salfit, one Palestinian was shot and injured early Saturday, by Israeli live fire.
Residents also held a rally in solidarity with Gazans, chanting slogans and condemning the Israeli attrocities against civilians.
Forces fired live ammunition, rubber-coated metal bullets, tear gas canisters and concussion grenades, injuring the Palestinian in his leg, upon which he was transferred to hospital for treatment.
See related: 931 Palestinians from Jerusalem and inside Israel Taken Captive in 3 Weeks
In France, armor-clad riot police arrested 70 people at a banned pro-Palestinian protest in central Paris, on Saturday, according to Ma’an News Agency.
The rally drew 4,000 people to Place de la Republique, said the interior ministry, while organizers chalked up the turnout at 10,000.
Police stepped in to disperse the rally with tear gas when they were targeted with rocks and other projectiles by the crowd. .
About 12 police were slightly injured..
Nearly 10,000 people turned out in Lyon for a similar protest, though it was not banned and went off peacefully, according to Ma’an.
In Marseille and Nice, hundreds also showed up in support for Palestinians.
Tens of thousands of people gathered outside the Israeli embassy in London as well, today, in protest against Israeli military operations in Gaza.
The Independent reports that 45,000 people joined the demonstration, which later followed a route to Parliament, according to Metro police.
Across the Atlantic, organizers estimate that around 25,000 marched down University Ave, in Toronto, Canada, on Saturday, where protesters chanted, “Stop Killing Children” and “Free, Free Palestine”, with some holding large placards of children who were killed during the recent Israeli assaults on Gaza.
Approximately two thousand New Yorkers protested this past Thursday evening, in a rally at Foley Square, according to the New York Campaign for the Boycott of Israel (ADALAH-NY).
According to WAFA’s report, a crowd led by protest organizers spoke aloud the names and ages of the over 170 Palestinian children killed in Israel’s current massacre on Gazan civilians.
Protesters marched through lower Manhattan with Palestinian flags and signs demanding an end to the US government’s and New York City elected officials’ support for Israel and its ongoing occupation and colonization of Palestine.
They also cried out for a boycott of companies which profiting from Israeli human rights abuses, and an end to the Gaza siege.
Rude Mechanical Orchestra (RMO) set the tempo of the march, in which protesters chanted:
“Israel bombs, we protest—boycott, sanction, and divest!”
Cars honked in support of the angry demonstrators, tourists recorded the event on camera and gave the thumbs-up as the march passed on and ended next to the Hudson River, where RMO led the group in a round of “Wein a Ramallah”.
The event was part of a national day of action for Gaza endorsed by 55 US rights groups, according to WAFA, including including Adalah-NY: The New York Campaign for the Boycott of Israel; Brooklyn for Peace; CODEPINK NYC; Jewish Voice for Peace – NYC; Jews Say No!; New Yorkers Against the Cornell-Technion Partnership (NYACT); New York City International Socialist Organization (ISO); NYC Queers Against Israeli Apartheid (QAIA); WESPAC Foundation; and Women in Black, Union Square.
Jewish Voice for Peace – NYC declared:
“Despite the claims by the Israeli government and mainstream American Jewish organizations that Israel’s brutality is supported by American Jews, we are part of the thousands upon thousands of Jews for whom this is not the truth, and the numbers are growing. We stand with all those opposing the massacre against the Palestinians of Gaza and the ongoing occupation of Palestine, and we join the Palestinian-led call for boycott, divestment, and sanctions until Israel adheres to basic principles of international law, human rights, and decency.”
A solidarity protest was organized by Jewish Voice for Peace this past Tuesday, as well, during which nine Jewish activists were arrested for occupying the office of The Friends of the Israel Defense Forces in Manhattan.
See related: Worldwide Outrage Over Israeli Genocide on Gaza
Jerusalem Patriarch Addresses the White House
Annual Celebration of Jerusalem Becomes “Day of Rage”, Protests Held Worldwide
