UPDATE - Gazans rally along Israel buffer zone for 41st week

UPDATES WITH INJURIES

By Mohamed Majid

GAZA CITY, Palestine (AA) – At least 20 Palestinian protesters were injured by Israeli army gunfire or teargas while taking part in ongoing rallies near the Gaza-Israel buffer zone, Gaza’s Health Ministry said Friday.

“Fifteen demonstrators were injured by gunfire and five medics were struck by teargas canisters,” ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qidra told Anadolu Agency.

In a statement, the ministry condemned Israel’s “continued violations against medical personnel”.

For the 41st consecutive Friday, Palestinians converged along the Gaza-Israel buffer zone to take part in ongoing demonstrations against Israel’s decades-long occupation.

Gaza’s National Authority for Breaking the Siege has urged Gazans to take part in the rallies, which, it affirmed, were set to continue “until they achieve their ultimate objectives”.

Demonstrators demand the right to return to their homes and villages in historical Palestine from which they were driven in 1948 to make way for the new state of Israel.

They also demand an end to Israel’s 12-year blockade of the Gaza Strip, which has gutted the coastal enclave’s economy and deprived its roughly two million inhabitants of many basic commodities.

Since the rallies in Gaza first began on March 30, more than 250 Palestinians have been martyred -- and thousands more injured -- by Israeli troops deployed near the buffer zone.