By Qais Abu Samra
NABLUS, Palestine (AA): Some 86 Palestinians were injured on Wednesday when Israeli army raided the Joseph’s Tomb area, east of Nablus in the northern occupied West Bank.
“The Palestine Red Crescent Society’s staff dealt with 86 injuries during clashes that broke out between Palestinians and the Israeli army in the vicinity of Joseph’s Tomb, east of Nablus,” the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) said in a statement.
“Among injuries, there was a serious injury due to live bullets, five serious injuries due to metal bullets and gas canisters, and 80 others due to tear gas inhalation,” the PRCS added.
Clashes between young Palestinians and the Israeli army broke out early Wednesday morning when Israeli forces raided the Joseph’s Tomb area, east of Nablus.
Eyewitnesses added that clashes also broke out between Palestinian gunmen and the Israeli army, who used live and metal ammunition and tear gas canisters.
The site has long been a flashpoint for violence.
Jews believe the site to be the burial place of the biblical patriarch Joseph. Muslims, however, challenge this assertion, saying an Islamic cleric – Sheikh Yussef Dawiqat – was buried at the site two centuries ago.
Tensions have been running high across the occupied West Bank in recent months amid repeated Israeli raids into Palestinian towns.
According to Palestinian figures, more than 160 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces since the start of this year. At least 20 Israelis have also been killed in separate attacks during the same period.
*Writing by Ikram Kouachi
[Photo: Israeli forces demolish a house belonging to Palestinians claiming that it was unlicensed, in Wadi Qaddum district of East Jerusalem on May 17, 2023. Photojournalist :Mostafa Alkharouf/AA]
