Five Palestinians were wounded by live rounds, one seriously, when around 1,500 workers clashed with Israeli troops early Tuesday at a crossing point between the Gaza Strip and Israel, witnesses said.
The incident happened at the Erez crossing point when the Israelis barred entry to Gaza's industrial zone where the Palestinians work, the witnesses said.
Troops replied with live rounds, rubber-coated bullets and tear gas when the Palestinians threw rocks and stones.
One worker was in a "very, very serious" condition after being hit by two live rounds, according to a doctor at Shifa hospital in Gaza.
The man was hit in the back and in the thigh, he said. The clashes were continuing at 8:30 a.m. (06.30 GMT).
Overnight, Palestinians opened fire on Israeli soldiers near the Rafah refugee camp in the south of the Gaza Strip, witnesses said. The soldiers replied with rocket fire, the witnesses said of the two-hour firefight which ended around 1:30 a.m. (23.30 GMT). Several houses were damaged but there were no casualties.
There were no reports of incidents early Tuesday in the West Bank. The scene of some of the worst clashes in 19 days of violence which has swept the territories and left more than 100 people dead, the majority Palestinians, and more than 3,000 injured.
Tension rose in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday after a Palestinian policeman was killed in an incident with Israeli troops at Rafah Monday, near the Israeli-controlled crossing point into Egypt -- GAZA CITY (AFP)
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