Since the beginning of the protests, Israeli security forces have killed at least 39 Palestinians in the border region, including several people the IDF identified as members of armed groups.
By ADAM RASGONUpdated: APRIL 24, 2018 08:52Palestinian protesters carry tires to burn them during clashes with Israeli troops at Israel-Gaza border, in the southern Gaza Strip April 5, 2018. (photo credit: IBRAHEEM ABU MUSTAFA / REUTERS)
A Palestinian succumbed Monday to wounds he sustained during the beginning of a multi-week protest in the border region between Israel and the Gaza Strip, Ashraf al-Qidra, a spokesman for the Hamas-run Health Ministry in the coastal enclave, wrote on Facebook. A member of the Israeli security forces shot 18-year-old Tahrir Wahba in his head at the start of the protest, according to Qidra.Clashes kill at least one on Gaza border, April 20, 2018 (Reuters)Thousands of Palestinians in Gaza have taken part in the protests at the border in the past several weeks to support the return of Palestinian refugees and their descendants to their former homes in Israel.The IDF has described the protest in the border region as “a violent riot,” asserting that protesters have thrown Molotov cocktails and rocks at its soldiers, opened fire on them, set tires on fire and attempted to pass through Israel’s borders.However, local and international human rights groups and Palestinian officials have accused Israel of targeting “unarmed civilians” and using “excessive force.”Since the beginning of the protests, Israeli security forces have killed at least 39 Palestinians in the border region, including several people the IDF identified as members of armed groups.Wahba’s death came one day after 20-year-old Abdullah Shamali died on Sunday from wounds he sustained in the border region last Friday.The protest in the border region is expected to continue until mid-May.
