Palestinians clash with security forces in W. Bank

Rock throwers lightly injure two patrolmen while they were demolishing illegal Palestinian construction in the West Bank city of Kusra.

By TOVAH LAZAROFF, BEN HARTMAN
IDF disperses Palestinian riot 370 (photo credit: REUTERS)
IDF disperses Palestinian riot 370
(photo credit: REUTERS)
Palestinian rock-throwers lightly wounded two border policemen during clashes that broke out while security forces protected an IDF team that demolished illegal construction in the area of Kusra in Samaria on Wednesday.
Around 200 villagers came to the scene and many of them began throwing rocks. The border policeman were treated at the scene.
Border police arrested one man for throwing rocks.
Rabbi Yehiel Greniman of Rabbis for Human Rights happened to be in Kusra, which is 28 km. southeast of Nablus, and was talking with the head of the village when he got a call that soldiers were in the village to carry out demolitions.
He told The Jerusalem Post that they went to the scene, where they saw security forces in riot gear, and a bulldozer that had begun to knock down electric posts on the outskirts of the village.
“Pretty soon after they knocked down the first post, some kids threw rocks and the border police opened fired with tear gas,” he said.
“One young person collapsed and was lying there. I remember he was wearing a red shirt. I was told by someone that he had asthma and diabetes. We called the army to say, let the ambulance through,” Greniman said.
He added that it seemed to take the ambulance a long time to arrive.
More kids threw rocks and the security forces fired more tear gas, he said. At that point, he retreated.
According to Rabbis for Human Rights field worker Zacharia Sada, the army knocked down between 10 and 12 poles. But, he said, they were in an unpopulated area of the village and the impact on the community’s electricity supply was minimal.
The incident in Kusra was one of at least five clashes between Palestinians and the IDF in the West Bank on Wednesday.
Near Beit Umar, 11 km. northwest of Hebron, Palestinians threw stones at military vehicles, the IDF said. Security forces used riot dispersal means to clear the area.
In the Huwara area, south of Nablus, 70 Palestinians threw stones at soldiers, an IDF spokesman said. Security forces arrested three of the Palestinians, one of whom had a knife.
Some 50 Palestinians threw stones at Rachel’s Tomb on the northern edge of Bethlehem, the army said.