Journalist killed during protests buried

GAZA CITY: Hundreds of Palestinians including Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh yesterday attended the funeral of a Palestinian journalist who was killed while covering mass protests along the Israeli border on Friday.

Yasser Murtaja died from a gunshot wound sustained while filming in an area engulfed in thick black smoke from protesters setting tyres ablaze.

Israeli troops opened fire from across the border, killing nine Palestinians and wounding 491 in the second mass border protest in eight days. The deaths brought to 31 the number of Palestinians killed by Israeli fire since last week.

Murtaja was 100m from the border, wearing a flak jacket marked “press” and holding his camera when he was shot. The Israeli military has said it fired only at “instigators” involved in attacks on soldiers. It said it was investigating the circumstances of Murtaja’s death.

Hamas, which has ruled Gaza since a 2007 takeover and calls for Israel’s destruction, has called for a series of protests until May 15, the anniversary of Israel’s founding when Palestinians commemorate their mass uprooting during the 1948 war over Israel’s creation.

Murtaja, 30, was the co-founder of Ain media, a television production company that has done projects for foreign media clients. He was not affiliated with Hamas or any other militant group. – Ap/african News Agency/ana