The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
4 Palestinians killed in clashes with police
Protests rage over Trump’s Jerusalem announcement.
GAZA CITY, GAZA STRIP — Four Palestinians were killed by Israeli fire and dozens more wounded along with an Israeli officer in clashes across the West Bank and near Gaza’s border on Friday as the fallout continued over President Donald Trump’s announcement last week recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
Protests in response to Trump’s announcement, which departed from decades of U.S. policy that the fate of Jerusalem should be decided through negotiations, have yet to relent across various Arab and Muslim countries in the region.
Following Friday prayers, Palestinians in the West Bank and along the Gaza border set fire to tires and threw rocks at Israeli troops who responded with tear gas and live fire.
Gaza Health Ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Kidra said two Palestinians were killed from gunshots to the head.
Another 82 Palestinians were injured in clashes in several locations along Gaza’s border with Israel, at least five of whom were seriously wounded, he said.
Another Palestinian died later from wounds sustained in clashes near Jerusalem, the Health Ministry said.
Friday’s deaths put to eight the number of Palestinians killed since Trump’s declaration on Dec. 6.
The Israel military said thousands of “Palestinian rioters” rolled burning tires and hurled firebombs and
rocks at security forces, who responded with tear gas and also “fired selectively toward main instigators.”
Palestinians have been clashing with Israeli troops across the West Bank and along the Gaza border since Trump recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital last week.
Jerusalem is home to sensitive Jewish, Muslim and Christian holy sites and the fate of the territory is an emotionally charged issue at the heart of the conflict. The Palestinians seek east Jerusalem, captured by Israel in the 1967 Mideast War from Jordan, as the capital of their hoped-for state. Israel says the entire city, including east Jerusalem, is its eternal capital.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has said Trump’s move disqualified the U.S. from continuing in its role as the traditional mediator of peace talks.
Trump said his decision merely recognizes the reality that Jerusalem already serves as Israel’s capital and is not
meant to prejudge the final borders of the city.
Vice President Mike Pence, however, was forced to delay a trip to the Middle East amid the outcry over Trump’s decision. Aides to Abbas said that the Palestinian president would not meet with Pence, who is now scheduled to arrive in Israel from Egypt on Wednesday. Abbas had originally planned to host Pence, a devout Christian, in the biblical West Bank town of Bethlehem.
Also Friday, in another declaration likely to inflame passions among Palestinians and others across the Middle East, senior Trump administration officials outlined their view that the Western Wall in east Jerusalem, considered Judaism’s holiest site, will ultimately be declared a part of Israel.
Meanwhile Friday, near the West Bank city of Ramallah, one Palestinian was shot and killed after he attacked an officer with a knife, wounding him moderately, said Israeli police.