Nearly 100 Palestinian Protesters Wounded in Clashes

Israeli Troops Respond to Stones With Live Fire

by Jason Ditz, February 22, 2013

Nearly 100 Palestinian protesters were wounded today throughout the West Bank, as demonstrators took to the streets to call for the release of several hunger striking detainees held by Israeli forces.

The Red Crescent confirmed 94 wounded across the occupied territory, with around 50 wounded in protests outside of Ofer military prison near Ramallah. Thousands protested in major cities across the West Bank.

And while most of the injuries were from batons and stun grenades, Israeli troops also used live rounds against stone throwers in at least two cases, wounding a pair of the “ring leaders” of major protests.

Israel’s own rules of engagement explicitly ban using live ammunition against stone throwers, though commanders regularly ignore those rules and are virtually never punished for doing so.

Several of the hunger strikers in Israeli prisons are said to be in failing health, including one who was already released in a prisoner swap, only to be recaptured based on “secret” evidence of a violation of the terms of that release almost immediately thereafter.

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