Teenager among three dead, as Israeli forces fire on Gaza protests

Teenager among three dead, as Israeli forces fire on Gaza protests
Israeli troops have continued with the same deadly tactics to suppress protests on the Gaza border, with at least three people killed including a 15-year-old boy.
2 min read
08 June, 2018
Over 386 people have been injured as Israeli troops fired into protesters [AFP]

Three Palestinians were killed by Israeli fire on the Gaza border on Friday, the Palestinian enclave's health ministry reported, including a teenage boy.

Reports identified a 15-year old shot dead as Haitham al-Jamal. 

Ziad al-Bareem was also killed by live fire, east of Khan Younis in southern Gaza, Gaza's health ministry reported on Friday afternoon, as thousands of Palestinians took part in protests on the border.

Nabil Abu Daraba, a 26-year old, was also identified, after he was shot dead in the north of the territory.

The ministry had initially announced a fourth man had been killed, but swiftly clarified his heart had been restarted.

Medics reported over 386 people were injured when Israeli troops fired tear gas and live ammunition into the protesters as tensions continue to rise.

Some 10,000 Palestinians gathered by the border in the eleventh week of protests, which coincide today with 'Jerusalem Day' - initiated by Iran. Palestinian Islamist party Hamas aided the calls for a protest.

"There is no such state called Israel that could have a capital called Jerusalem," Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum said.

He said that the protests against Israel - which also call for an end to grinding Israeli and Egyptian blockades on Gaza - would continue, despite scores being killed.

Israeli security forces have killed over 126 Palestinians since protests began March 30.

Dubbed the "Great Return March", the demonstrations have have centred on a demand for the right of Palestinian refugees to return to their homes, after they were expelled following the 1948 creation of Israel.  

The demonstrations and violence peaked on May 14 when at least 61 Palestinians were killed when Gazans protested the US transfer of its embassy in Israel to the disputed city of Jerusalem on the same day.