Palestinian said to die of wounds sustained in Friday border clash

A Palestinian died Sunday of gunshot wounds sustained two days earlier in clashes on the Israel-Gaza border, the Hamas-run health ministry in the enclave said.

The death raises to seven the number of Palestinians killed as a result of Friday’s clashes, when thousands again thronged the border fence. The IDF said helicopters and aircraft hit three Hamas sites during the protests.

Yahya al-Hassanat, 37, was shot in the head along the border near Al-Bureij in central Gaza, the ministry said.

Five other Palestinians were also shot dead during Friday’s protests, the ministry said, while one died when a grenade he was carrying exploded accidentally, according to witnesses. Another 170 people were injured in the clashes with IDF troops, the health ministry said.

Thousands of Palestinians gathered at five locations along the border on Friday, burning tires and throwing rocks and firebombs at Israeli troops, who responded with tear gas and occasional live fire.

The IDF did not comment on the deaths, but said approximately 16,000 “demonstrators and rioters” had gathered along the border.

The Palestinians continued with their weekly Friday riots along the fence despite Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman saying earlier that he was “hopeful” that the Gaza Strip would be calm over the weekend. That was after reports of a ceasefire being brokered by Egypt.

“I am hopeful and I anticipate that this Friday will pass more quietly — that’s what we need to hope for,” the defense minister said.

Later that evening, 34 rockets were fired at Israel overnight and Saturday morning, according to the IDF, 13 of which were intercepted by the Iron Dome anti-missile system.

Two of the rockets fell in Gaza and the rest were said to have landed in open areas.

In response to the rocket fire, Israeli aircraft attacked 95 targets in Gaza belonging to Hamas and Islamic Jihad.

The army said the targets included military and weapons manufacturing facilities through the Strip, a factory in Khan Younis producing cement used in subterranean tunnels and a four-story building in Gaza City headquartering Hamas security services.

Islamic Jihad announced later on Saturday it had agreed to an Egyptian-brokered ceasefire to end an escalating exchange of fire with Israel.

A spokesman for the group told the Gaza-based Safa news site that a ceasefire agreement went into effect following Egyptian communication with its leadership.

He said Islamic Jihad would remain committed to the ceasefire as long as Israel did likewise.

There was no immediate acknowledgement of the ceasefire declaration in Israel, which in the past has denied proclamations by Gaza-based terror groups regarding understandings to end the fighting.

Israel views Hamas as ultimately responsible for any attacks emanating from the territory it controls, regardless of the source.

A few hours after Islamic Jihad announced the ceasefire, the Eshkol Regional Council lifted orders that residents must remain in close proximity to bomb shelters.

The rocket fire came amid a deadly flareup in violence in the Gaza Strip.

Last week, a rocket was launched at southern Israel from Gaza, triggering sirens in a number of communities in the Eshkol region, ending a week-long stretch of relative calm in the coastal enclave. In response to that attack, the IDF said it hit eight Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip, including training bases and a weapons production facility.

Since March 30, Palestinians in the Gaza Strip have participated in a series of protests and riots dubbed the “Great March of Return,” which have mostly involved the burning of tires and rock-throwing along the security fence, but have also seen shooting attacks, bombings and attempted border breaches as well as the sending of incendiary balloons and kites into Israel.

At least 160 Palestinians have been killed and thousands more have been injured in the clashes with IDF troops, according to AP figures. Hamas, an Islamist terror group that seized control of the Strip in 2007 and seeks to destroy Israel, has acknowledged that dozens of the dead were its members. An Israeli soldier was shot dead by a sniper on the border.