Israeli troops wound 75 Palestinians in Gaza protests

At least 75 Palestinians were injured Friday during protests in eastern Gaza.

Palestinians converged near a fence that divides the Gaza Strip and Israel after Gaza’s National Authority for Return and Breaking the Siege (NARBS), which organizes weekly rallies, called on Palestinians to attend the demonstration.

Forty-two of the wounded were hit by live fire from Israeli troops stationed along the fence and 18 of the injured were women and children, according to a statement from the Palestinian Health Ministry.

Israeli troops also injured a  foreign  photojournalist when he was covering peaceful rallies in Gaza Strip. Ali Jadallah, who was hit by a rubber bullet on his forehead, was taken to a local hospital.

The statement did not provide details on conditions of injured.

Israeli troops also targeted two ambulances that arrived to treat the injured, according to the ministry.

Since the Gaza rallies began in March last year, nearly 270 protesters have been martyred and thousands more wounded by Israeli troops deployed near the buffer zone.

Demonstrators demand an end to Israel’s 12-year blockade of the Gaza Strip, which has shattered the coastal enclave’s economy and deprived its two million inhabitants of many basic amenities.