A disabled Palestinian uses a slingshot to hurl stones at Israeli troops on the Gaza-Israel border, east of Gaza City, on Feb. 15, 2019. At least 20 Palestinians were injured on Friday during clashes between hundreds of Palestinian demonstrators and Israeli soldiers in eastern Gaza Strip, close to the border with Israel, medics said. (Xinhua)
GAZA, Feb. 15 (Xinhua) -- At least 20 Palestinians were injured on Friday during clashes between hundreds of Palestinian demonstrators and Israeli soldiers in eastern Gaza Strip, close to the border with Israel, medics said.
At least 20 Palestinians, who were peacefully demonstrating in eastern Gaza Strip, were shot and wounded by Israeli soldiers' gunfire, said Ashraf al-Qedra, spokesman of the Health Ministry in Gaza, adding that two were seriously wounded.
Fierce clashes broke out on Friday afternoon between hundreds of Palestinian protesters and Israeli soldiers close to the border between eastern Gaza Strip and Israel.
The clashes were expected to flare for several hours, until it got dark at the end of the day, according to the rallies' organizers.
Palestinian protesters joined the weekly anti-Israel protests, known as the "Great March of Return," on Friday since late March last year.
The highest commission of the event said in a statement that the Gaza Strip people are urged to join the weekly protests, saying that "Gaza is unbreakable."
"Marches of return will go on until it achieves all its goals, including lifting the Israeli blockade imposed on the Gaza Strip for 12 years and toppling the U.S. peace plan," said the statement.
In central Gaza Strip, east of al-Bureij refugee camp, close to the border with Israel, Palestinian protesters built up barriers of sand bags near the border and brought dozens of car tires for burning it during the protests.
However, the commission stressed that it is the right of the Palestinians to demonstrate against the tight measures practiced by Israel against Gaza, and called on the protesters to respect the peacefulness of the marches.
Meanwhile, several Israeli media outlets said on Thursday night that the Israeli army leadership instructed its soldiers on the border with Gaza to be on alert for a possible tension.
Since the start of the event on March 30 last year, Israeli soldiers killed more than 250 demonstrators and wounded around 26,000 others, most of whom were wounded by Israeli soldiers' gunfire, according to figures by the Gaza Health Ministry.
