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Asharq Al-Awsat
Asharq Al-Awsat
World
Asharq Al-Awsat

Palestinian Woman Shot Dead by Israeli Soldiers near Gaza Border

A Palestinian woman was shot dead by Israeli troops near the Gaza border fence. (AFP)

Israeli troops shot dead on Friday a Palestinian woman near the Gaza border fence as protests continued along the enclave.

Razan al-Najjar, 21, was shot near Khan Yunis in the south of the territory, health ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra said, bringing the toll of Gazans killed by Israeli fire since the end of March to 123.

According to Qudra, Najjar was a volunteer with the ministry, wearing the white uniform of a medic when she was shot in the chest.

Palestinian medical sources said over 100 people were injured Friday, 40 of them with live fire.

An army spokesman said they were looking into the report.

But the military said in a statement that "thousands of rioters" had gathered at five locations along the border, "burning tires adjacent to the security fence and attempting to damage security infrastructure".

Shots were fired at an army vehicle and a Palestinian had crossed into Israel, planted a grenade and returned to Gaza, it said, stressing soldiers were acting "in accordance with the rules of engagement".

An exchange of fire on Tuesday night started with a barrage of rocket and mortars into Israel from Gaza, prompting Israel to respond with strikes on 65 militant sites in Gaza.

It was the worst flare-up since the 2014 war in Gaza and followed weeks of deadly demonstrations and clashes along the border, beginning on March 30.

The protests have demanded that Palestinians who fled or were expelled in the 1948 war surrounding Israel's creation be allowed to return to their former homes, now inside the Jewish state.

They peaked on May 14 when at least 61 Palestinians were killed in clashes as tens of thousands of Gazans protested the US transfer of its embassy in Israel to the disputed city of Jerusalem the same day.

Low-level demonstrations have continued since.

At the United Nations, meanwhile, the United States is set to veto an Arab-backed draft resolution calling for protection measures for the Palestinians against Israeli gunfire near the Gaza border.

US Ambassador Nikki Haley described the text as a "grossly one-sided approach" and vowed "the United States will unquestionably veto" the measure put forward by Kuwait on behalf of Arab countries.

Kuwait presented its draft two weeks ago, initially calling for an international protection mission for the Palestinians as protests turned violent on the Israeli-Gaza border.

The council has been deadlocked over how to respond to the violence, even as UN envoy Nickolay Mladenov warned this week that Gaza was "close to the brink of war."

A draft resolution requires nine votes to be adopted in the 15-member council and no veto from the five permanent members -- Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States.

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