Israeli forces attack, wound Palestinians across West Bank

Some 113 Palestinians taking part in an anti-settlement rally on Sobeih Mountain in Beita town, south of the occupied West Bank city of Nablus, were injured in clashes with Israeli forces on Friday.

According to the Palestine Red Crescent Society, 16 of injured were shot with live ammunition, while 20 were wounded when Israeli forces fired rubber bullets at them.

Meanwhile, four of the injured were physically attacked by the Israeli forces, the Palestine Red Crescent Society said, adding 73 cases of suffocation caused by inhaling tear gas were among the injuries.

Local sources said Israeli forces used a drone to fire tear gas at protesters in Beita.

The rally came as settlers have recently established a settlement outpost on the mountain under the protection of Israeli forces.

Israeli forces also attacked Palestinians in the village of Ni’lin, west of Ramallah City, on Friday, leaving two Palestinians hit with live bullets.

The clashes came as residents of the village took part in an event against the settlements.

In the village of Kafr Qaddum, dozens of Palestinians suffered breathing difficulties due to inhaling tear gas fired by Israeli forces at participants in weekly anti-settlement protests.

Also on Friday, Israeli forces attacked “Jerusalem al-Quds Marathon” which began from the entrance to the neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah to the Batn al-Hawa district in the village of Silwan in Jerusalem al-Quds in solidarity with dozens of Palestinian families threatened with evictions in Sheikh Jarrah and Silwan.

The Israeli attack left at least 23 Palestinians injured, the Palestine Red Crescent Society said.

Meanwhile, the Palestinian Wafa news agency cited the head of al-Amal Association for Health Services as saying that its medical staff dealt with 40 injuries ranging from shots by rubber bullets and breathing difficulties to baton inuries as Israeli forces stormed Batn al-Hawa and targeted the residents’ homes.

The news agency said the forces suppressed the marathon by firing tear gas and sound bombs at the competitors.

Israeli forces also made several arrests during the crackdown.

Separately, a Palestinian man was wounded in a car-ramming attack conducted by an Israeli settler near the Dung Gate or Mughrabi Gate, one of the entrances to al-Aqsa Mosque.

More than 600,000 Israelis live in over 230 settlements built since the 1967 Israeli occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem al-Quds.

All Israeli settlements are illegal under international law as they are built on occupied land. The United Nations Security Council has condemned Israel’s settlement activities in the occupied territories in several resolutions.