Israel kills 2 Palestinians at Gaza protests

Israeli occupation troops shot dead two Palestinians, aged 25 and 15, and wounded at least 220 others at protests along the Gaza border on Friday, Gaza health officials said, as diplomats sought to secure a durable ceasefire deal.

Over four months of weekly Friday border protests that began on March 30 have reduced in intensity lately but organisers have vowed they would continue until the Israeli occupation regime lifts economic sanctions on the coastal enclave.

The Israeli occupation military said some 8,000 Gazans had participated in the protests at five locations along the border. A Gaza hospital official said of the 220 hurt, 90 suffered wounds as a result of the live fire. At least 159 Palestinians have been killed in the protests and one Israeli occupation soldier was shot dead by a sniper in Gaza.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu cancelled a trip to Colombia this week, his office said, and is due to consult with top ministers today on proposals to end the tensions.

Sailboat seized

Meanwhile, the Israeli regime’s navy seized a Swedish-flagged sailboat attempting to breach the Gaza blockade yesterday. The 12 passengers are mostly from Sweden but also from Germany, Britain, Spain, France and Canada. They are in custody and will be put on flights home. The SY Freedom for Gaza was carrying medical supplies and two of its passengers were journalists, said an organiser from a group named ‘Ship to Gaza’ which organised the trip.