Israel says it will expand response if clashes at Gaza border continue
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Israel will target militant groups inside Gaza if violence along the territory’s border with Israel drags on, the chief military spokesman warned Saturday, a day after 15 Palestinians were killed by Israeli fire in the area’s deadliest violence in four years.
The violence significantly calmed Saturday as just small groups of Palestinians threw stones in several areas near the border fence, drawing Israeli fire that injured 25 people, the Gaza Health Ministry said.
Friday’s mass marches largely were led by Gaza’s ruling Hamas group and touted as the launch of a six-week-long protest campaign against a stifling, decade-old blockade of the territory.
Protests are aiming to culminate in a large border march on May 15, the 70th anniversary of Israel’s founding. The date is mourned by Palestinians as their “nakba,” or catastrophe, when hundreds of thousands were uprooted in the 1948 Mideast war over Israel’s creation.
Organizers set up five tent encampments, each several hundred meters from the border, to serve as launch points for protest.
Some young men broke away Saturday, throwing stones at Israeli soldiers on the other side of the fence, drawing live rounds and tear gas.
In two separate incidents, an Associated Press reporter saw two men who walked close to the fence get shot in the legs by soldiers.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu congratulated the soldiers Saturday for allowing the rest of the country to celebrate the Passover holiday safely.
“Israel is acting determinedly and decisively to protect its sovereignty and the security of its citizens,” he said.
Palestinian health officials said 15 Palestinians were killed by Israeli fire and more than 750 hit by live rounds Friday, making it the bloodiest day in Gaza since the 2014 cross-border war between Israel and Hamas.
It appears unlikely protests will continue at such a scale, with larger turnouts only expected after Friday noon prayers, the highlight of the Muslim religious week.
In Friday’s confrontations, large crowds had gathered near the fence, with smaller groups of protesters rushing forward, throwing stones and burning tires.
Israeli troops responded with live fire and rubber-coated steel pellets, while drones dropped tear gas from above. Soldiers with rifles were perched on high earthen embankments overlooking the scene.
Israel’s military initially claimed Friday that “thousands of Palestinians are rioting in six locations throughout the Gaza Strip, rolling burning tires and hurling stones.” Video released by the army appeared to show fewer actually engaged in direct violence.
On Saturday, the chief army spokesman, Brig. Gen. Ronen Manelis, said that while thousands of Palestinians approached the border Friday, those engaged in stone-throwing were in the hundreds.
Manelis denied soldiers used excessive force, saying those killed by Israeli troops were men between the ages of 18 and 30 who were involved in violence and belonged to militant factions. The army later released the names and ages of 10 of the dead, including eight members of Hamas and two from other militant groups.