Israeli army injures Palestinian in West Bank clashes

By Esat Firat

JERUSALEM (AA) - At least one Palestinian was injured Friday as Israeli forces used live rounds and tear gas to disperse the protesters demonstrating against illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank.

Palestinians held a demonstration in various regions of the West Bank, including the northern town of Kafr Qaddum, to protest the illegal Jewish settlements and Israel's separation barrier, which snakes through the West Bank.

The Israeli army used both rubber and live 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.

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