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Palestinians Begin Pelting Stones at Israeli Soldiers in Gaza
Palestinians began hurling stones at the Israeli forces guarding the Jewish settlement of Netzarim in central Gaza, which witnessed the bloodiest clashes recently in Palestinian territories, witnesses said Friday morning.
One Israeli helicopter gunship is hovering above the settlement but the Israeli side has neither fired rockets nor shot at the Palestinian crowd, the number of which is about a hundred.
Ten ambulances have rushed to the scene to deal with any possible emergencies.
The militant Palestinian Hamas group had declared Friday as a "Day of Rage" to mark the death of Palestinians in clashes with Israeli forces recently.
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak has ordered a closure barring Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza from entering Israel on Friday.
The closure order went effective at 4 a.m. (0200 GMT) Friday and will last till the end of the two-day Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur on Monday.
Israel deployed heavy security forces in certain possible flashpoints, particularly in Jerusalem, after Hamas warned in a statement on Thursday that "Friday will be a day of distinct escalation and clashes."
West Bank Preventive Security Service chief Jibril Rajoub has also urged Israel to refrain from shooting at Palestinian demonstrators.
Barak on Thursday vowed again to make an all-out effort to reach a peace deal with the Palestinians in the coming weeks and called on Palestinian leader Arafat to take measures to stop the violence on the Palestinian side.
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