Israel opens fire on Gaza rally, killing 2 Palestinians

GAZA, 23 Mar 2019 [Fik/News Sources]: Two Palestinians were killed and dozens of others injured, including an Anadolu Agency photojournalist, during a Friday rally along the Gaza-Israel buffer zone, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.

In a statement, ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra confirmed that two Palestinians -- aged 18 and 29 -- had been killed by Israeli army gunfire.

Ali Jadallah, an Anadolu Agency photojournalist, was also reportedly injured during Friday’s demonstration.

Jadallah is currently receiving treatment at a nearby hospital.

More than 250 protesters have been killed since Palestinians began holding regular demonstrations along the Gaza-Israel buffer zone in March of last year.

Demonstrators demand the right of Palestinian refugees to return to their homes in historical Palestine from which they were driven in 1948 to make way for the new state of Israel.

They also demand an end to Israel’s 12-year blockade of the Gaza Strip, which has gutted the coastal enclave’s economy and deprived its roughly two million inhabitants of many basic commodities.