JERUSALEM, Sept. 5 (Xinhua) -- Israel closed on Wednesday Erez crossing with the Gaza Strip after "riots" near the border, with only the exception of urgent humanitarian cases.
Israeli military said the closure was due to "riots" of protesters, who hurled rocks and damaged the infrastructure of the crossing on the Palestinian side.
Meanwhile, Palestinian Health Ministry said that in the protest, which took place on Tuesday, several Palestinians were injured by the Israeli fire.
An Israeli military spokesperson said in a statement that the crossing will be closed until the damage is repaired, adding that the closure does not include humanitarian cases, which will be approved on a case-by-case basis.
Israel sporadically closes its crossings with Gaza as a punitive measure.
In August, Israel closed the Erez crossing for about a week following violence along the fence separating Israel and Gaza.
Gazans have been staging rallies near the border since March 30 to protest the crippling blockade on the enclave starting in 2007, while Israel blames Hamas, the Islamist Palestinian movement that runs Gaza, for orchestrating the protest.
Israeli forces have killed at least 166 Palestinians, including 125 protestors in the rallies, while a Israeli soldier was killed by a Palestinian sniper.
