Description

RAMALLAH (Ma'an) -- Seven Palestinians were injured on Friday afternoon when Israeli forces opened fire on demonstrators in the village of Safa near Ramallah protesting on the anniversary of the killing of a local youth the week before.

The large rally in the central West Bank village began from the local mosque and moved toward the separation wall as it passes through the village, but marchers were stopped before reaching the area when Israeli soldiers used live fire, rubber-coated steel bullets, and tear gas canisters against them.

The youths responded by throwing stones, Molotov cocktails, and fireworks at the soldiers, who shot 10 youths over the course of the clashes.

The village protest came a week after Israeli forces shot dead Odai Nafiz Jabr, 19, with live bullets during a rally condemning the Israeli assault on Gaza, which has killed nearly 1,900 Palestinians.

He was the 14th Palestinian killed in the West Bank over the last month, as the region has seen the largest protests in years in solidarity with Gazans under assault.

An Israeli military spokeswoman said that "rioters were hurling rocks at security forces, who responded with riot dispersal means."

She could not confirm any hits, however.