In a statement, ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra said Israeli forces opened fire toward Gaza’s eastern border, injuring 11 people, one seriously. The injuries came as scores of Palestinians gathered near the border as part of Palestinian protests demanding the right of return to refugees. On Friday, tens of thousands converged on the Gaza Strip’s roughly 45-kilometer-long eastern border with Israel to reaffirm their right to return to their ancestral homes in historical Palestine. Ahead of the mass demonstrations, Israel had deployed thousands of troops along the border. Dubbed the “Great March of Return,” the protests also intended to pressure Israel to lift its more than decade-long blockade of Gaza.
