Israeli army injures 4 Palestinians in West Bank

By Mustafa Deveci

JERUSALEM (AA) - At least four Palestinians were injured on Friday as Israeli forces used rubber bullets and tear gas to disperse protesters demonstrating against illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank, according to local sources.

Palestinians held a demonstration in the towns of Beit Dajan and Kafr Qaddoum in the northern Nablus city to protest the illegal Jewish settlements and Israel's separation barrier, which snakes through the West Bank.

The Israeli army used rubber bullets, as well as tear gas, to break up the marches, with protesters pelting Israeli soldiers with stones.

Dozens of other protesters suffered difficulty breathing after inhaling tear gas.

Israel occupied Jerusalem and the whole of the West Bank following the 1967 Six-Day War and began establishing settlements in the area in the following year.

Palestinians usually stage weekly protests in the occupied West Bank against illegal Israeli settlements.

The West Bank, including East Jerusalem, is regarded as "occupied territory" under international law, making all Jewish settlements there illegal.

*Writing by Zehra Nur Duz in Ankara