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| Israel-Palestine-Jordan | ||||
| 4 soldiers injured as Palestinians mark Nakba Day | ||||
| 2013-05-16 | ||||
Services and protests were held across the West Bank Wednesday to commemorate the 65th Nakba Day, the "catastrophe" of Palestinian displacement resulting from the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948.
"The right of return will not die," chanted the protesters, referring to the demand for millions of descendants of Palestinians who lived in what is today Israel to return to their homes -- a move that would spell the end of the Jewish state. Schools closed at midday and parents brought their children to the demonstration.
"We shall return. We will never give up or compromise over our land," chanted the marchers, members of Hamas, Islamic Jihad and other Palestinian factions.
In east Jerusalem, Israeli police used water cannon and officers on horseback to disperse an "illegal march," police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said. Fourteen protesters were arrested, as was a Palestinian suspected of attacking a Jewish man as he walked near the Old City, he said. In Ramallah, the Palestinian Authority set up a stage near Manara Square in the center of the city, where artists performed traditional dances and songs. Demonstrators also protested outside Ofer Prison, where many Palestinian security prisoners are held. The site is a common spot for mass rallies. Several people were injured, including medics, after the IDF fired tear gas and rubber bullets during confrontations with protesters, according to reports on social media sites. Dozens of Palestinians also threw rocks and Molotov cocktails at Israeli security forces in Bitunia and Qalandiya, north of Jerusalem. The IDF retaliated by using riot dispersal techniques and no one was injured, Israel Radio reported.
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| Posted by:Steve White |
| #2 |
| Posted by: Glenmore 2013-05-16 10:16 |
| #1 |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2013-05-16 09:41 |