Palestinian police reported that seven Palestinian youth were injured, one seriously, by Israeli gunfire near the Kfar Darom settlement in the Gaza Strip on Sunday afternoon.
Hundreds of Palestinians began marching from Dir al-Balah in a demonstration of support for Palestinian leader
Yasser Arafat. Upon arrival at Kfar Darom, they started throwing stones at Israeli troops positioned around the settlement, according to reports. The soldiers responded with gunfire.
The wounded Palestinians, who ranged in age from
9 to 16, were all shot in their lower bodies, witnesses told the AP.
The Israeli army, for its part, didn't immediately comment on the incident.
Elsewhere, also Sunday, two mortars were reported fired at an Israeli outpost near the Gaza Strip settlement of Naveh Dekalim, according to Israel Radio. No injuries were reported.
Meanwhile, Israel's Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz has postponed his visit to the United States, scheduled for Tuesday, after Prime Minister Ariel Sharon asked him to, due to the "security situation."
Mofaz was expected to meet with US Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, National Security Advisor Condoleeza Rice and other senior defense and foreign policy officials in the US capital. (Albawaba.com)
© 2003 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
