Gazan shot in May during border demonstrations dies
Hamas-run health ministry says Wissam Hijazi, 30, who was being treated in Egypt, was shot by Israel on day of US Embassy opening
A Palestinian shot three months ago in clashes along the Israel-Gaza border has died while being treated in Egypt, the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza said Monday.
Wissam Hijazi, 30, was shot on May 14, during a day of huge protests along the border, ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra told AFP.
The body has not yet been returned to Gaza, he said.
The protests, which coincided with the controversial opening of the US Embassy in Jerusalem on the same day, were the peak of months of border demonstrations.
A Palestinian died today from wounds he received during March of Return back in May, Wissam Yousef Hijazi, 30 years old. #Gaza #Israel pic.twitter.com/Mjjs60gAY1
— Joe Truzman (@JoeTruzman) August 12, 2018
At least 63 Palestinians were killed on May 14, making it the bloodiest day in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict since the 2014 war. At least 50 of those killed were Hamas members, the terror group acknowledged.
Since the organized protests and clashes began along the Gaza border on March 30, more than 160 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire. Dozens of the fatalities were members of terror groups, Hamas and Islamic Jihad have said.
Israel said its troops were defending the border and accused Hamas of trying to carry out terror attacks under the cover of the protests.
In July, one Israeli soldier was shot dead by a Palestinian sniper sparking fierce retaliatory strikes.
Three Palestinians, including a medic, were killed Friday during renewed protests.
The protests at Israel’s border peaked on the day Aqeel was injured, when some 40,000 Gazans protested and rioted along the fence and violent clashes took place between troops and Palestinians.
In addition to the border protests, Palestinians in the Gaza Strip have launched countless kites, balloons, and inflated latex condoms bearing flammable materials, and occasionally explosives, into Israeli territory, sparking near-daily fires that have burned thousands of acres of farmland, parks, and forests.
The Israeli military says it has insisted its soldiers adhere to the rules of engagement to defend Israeli civilians and security infrastructure from attacks cloaked by the protests.
The Times of Israel Community.