Israeli troops shot and wounded seven Palestinians on the Gaza border on Friday, Gaza medical officials said, the day before a mass rally called to mark the first anniversary of weekly protests in which around 200 Palestinians have been killed. Despite a decision by Gaza protest organizers not to hold a big demonstration on Friday some Palestinians turned out, although in smaller numbers than usual. Humanitarian officials urged restraint for Saturday's anniversary to avoid any further bloodshed. The Israeli military said its troops faced around 800 demonstrators along the fortified frontier on Friday and that they had used riot dispersal measures to defend the border. There were also sporadic clashes in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, where Palestinian youths threw petrol bombs in Hebron, and 150 demonstrators hurled stones at Israeli troops, who fired back with rubber bullets and tear gas. Meanwhile, Palestinians in Gaza are expected to gather in huge numbers along the fence separating them from Israel on Saturday, testing a fragile ceasefire only days after a major flare-up. The demonstrations mark the first anniversary of deadly protests on the border with Israel. Days of negotiations have raised hopes that the kind of bloodshed seen in previous mass protests, particularly last May against the transfer of the US embassy to Jerusalem, can be avoided. Protesters are calling to be allowed to return to homes their families fled in the 1948 Arab-Israeli war and that are now inside the Jewish state. The Gaza Strip's rulers Hamas, with which Israel has fought three wars since 2008, has called for one million people to join the demonstrations Saturday at different points along the border. Two million Palestinians live in impoverished Gaza, crammed between Israel, Egypt and the Mediterranean. Israel has maintained a crippling blockade of the strip for more than a decade, while the border with Egypt is also often closed. Israel says the blockade is necessary to contain Hamas, which does not recognize its existence and argues that the return of the Palestinians would mean an end to it as a Jewish state. Ahead of the anniversary, Israel has reinforced the border fence in many places. On Monday, a rocket fired from Gaza struck a house north of the Israeli commercial capital Tel Aviv, injuring seven Palestinians. In response, the Israeli military struck dozens of Hamas sites in Gaza until a ceasefire was reached. A security delegation from Egypt, traditionally the mediator between Hamas and Israel, has since shuttled between the two sides to head off a new escalation. On Friday, Hamas officials said they backed an Egyptian proposal to maintain calm during Saturday's protests. The agreement could see Israel ease its blockade of the strip in exchange for calm, with protesters being kept at a distance from the border fence. Hamas leader Ismail Haniya said the talks covered a ceasefire, increasing humanitarian aid and improving the economic situation in Gaza. There was no word from the Israeli side. Jamie McGoldrick, UN humanitarian coordinator for the Palestinian territories, spoke of positive signals from all parties and was "quietly hopeful". "People are saying ok we want demonstrations... but we don't want people to put themselves in situations of violence and find themselves close to the fence," he said. "All signals and signs look like it is not going to be a heavily violent situation. Obviously that can change with an incident, an accident or a technical issue." At the border fence, Tareq Al-Ghuz, 18, said he has attended every week since the protests began and showed a picture on his phone of a friend who he said had been shot in the eye and died. Looking out at a newly fortified Israeli fence, he said he and his friends were unemployed and had little to lose. "There is no work for young people, we are besieged from the sea, from the south to the east, wherever we go we are blockaded." Asked whether he would stay away from the fence on Saturday as requested by organizers, he laughed. "Every week they say that. They don't control us," the teenager said. Some demonstrators each week burn tires, throw projectiles and rocks and even try to approach and break the Israeli border fence. Since March 30, 2018, at least 258 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli gunfire, the vast majority along the border. Two Israeli soldiers were killed. The protests culminated on May 14, 2018, with huge demonstrations against the transfer of the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. It led to split-screen coverage of the embassy opening ceremony in Jerusalem, attended by President Donald Trump's daughter Ivanka and her husband Jared Kushner, alongside bloodshed in Gaza. At least 62 Palestinians were killed that day by Israeli gunfire and hundreds wounded. Israel says it is only defending its border and accuses Hamas of orchestrating the demonstrations to deflect pressure from internal dissent. Palestinians and human rights organizations accuse Israel of excessive use of force. — Agencies
