Israel injures 38 people during West Bank protests

By Esat Firat

JERUSALEM (AA) – At least 38 people were injured in the West Bank on Saturday when Israeli forces attacked demonstrators who gathered to mark the Nakba Day and protest Israeli attacks on the occupied Gaza Strip, the Palestinian Red Crescent said.

The aid body said in a written statement that 28 people were injured by live bullets while 10 others sustained injures by rubber-coated bullets.

On the 73rd anniversary of Nakba, or The Catastrophe, Palestinians held demonstrations in the cities of Hebron, Ramallah, and Qalqilya, especially in the Kusra town of Nablus, in the West Bank to protest Israel's attacks on Gaza.

Israeli forces used live and plastic bullets as well as tear gas against the demonstrators, and Palestinians responded by throwing stones.

Since May 10, a total of 145 Palestinians, including 41 children and 23 women, have lost their lives and 1,100 people have been injured by Israeli attacks on Gaza Strip, according to the latest figures by the Gaza Health Ministry.

Observed on May 15 annually, the Nakba Day marks the 1948 forced expulsion of nearly 800,000 Palestinians from their homes in historical Palestine.

Seventy-three years ago, hundreds of Palestinians were forced to leave their villages and towns by Zionist gangs to pave for the way for the creation of the state of Israel.

*Writing by Gozde Bayar