Six Palestinians Killed by Zionists in Gaza
Friday’s violence came as clashes have increased in frequency since Israeli security forces began to crack down on Palestinian worshippers at the al-Aqsa Mosque compound in the occupied East Jerusalem last month.
"It is very dangerous here," Ezz Zanoun, a Gaza-based photographer who was at the protest, told Al Jazeera. "They always shoot at the border, but it's much worse today than usual."
Among those killed was a 15-year-old boy who was fatally shot at another demonstration in the al-Faraheen village, southeast of Gaza City.
Medical sources said out of the 70 injured in the firing at least 10 are in critical condition.
"At first they started shooting with rubber-coated steel bullets and stun grenades, then they fired live ammunition at us," he said. "Dozens have been injured, but the number is growing because the clashes are still going on."
There are injured people everywhere," he said. "The bullets are flying everywhere."
In the occupied West Bank, Israeli forces also attacked Palestinians protesting against Tel Aviv's provocations at al-Aqsa Mosque.
According to reports, five Palestinians were injured during clashes at a checkpoint, south of the West Bank city of Nablus, while seven others sustained injuries in similar skirmishes in Bethlehem, south of al-Quds (Jerusalem).
The development came only hours after an Israeli man stabbed and injured four Palestinians in the southern Israeli city of Dimona, which lies in the Negev desert and 36 kilometers (22 miles) south of Beersheba.
During a speech in Gaza City on Friday, Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh called on Palestinians to intensify resistance against Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem.
"We are calling for the strengthening and increasing of the intifada... It is the only path that will lead to liberation," Haniyeh said.
