Israeli forces shot three Palestinians, on Friday, during the weekly procession in the village of Kufur Qaddoum, east of Qalqilia in the northern occupied West Bank, local sources reported.
Hundreds of local Palestinians attended the weekly anti-settlement demonstration which began from the Omar Bin Al-Khattab Mosque in the village and proceeded towards the main street which was closed in 2003 by occupation authorities.
Soldiers opened fire with live rounds, rubber-coated steel rounds, and tear gas canisters at protestors, causing a number of injuries.
According to Morad Eshteiwi, the local media spokesman, a 21-year-old Palestinian man was shot with a live round in the foot, and was transported to Rafidia Hospital in Nablus for medical treatment.
Soldiers shot two young men with rubber-coated steel rounds, and caused dozens of others to sustain inhalation injuries from exposure to tear gas. they were treated by local medics on the scene.
The Israeli occupation authorities closed the main road of the town in 2003, and the villagers from Kufur Qaddoum and surrounding villages have rallied every week since then, demanding the authorities reopen the road.
Israeli colonists from the nearby illegal Kedumin settlement, established on expropriated Palestinian lands, have full access to the street, while Palestinians are forced to take longer routes to Nablus city, a major commercial center, prolonging travel time, causing undue hardship.
This week protestors gathered in support of the Gaza Strip during the latest aggression by the occupation military.
In related news, occupation forces shot three Palestinian young men in Azzoun town, east of Qalqilia, in the northern West Bank.
Local Palestinians protested the presence of Israeli soldiers at the main entrance to the town, which soldiers responded to with live fire.
Soldiers opened fire towards the young men, shooting at least three people in their lower extremities. The severity of the injuries were not known at the time of this report.
