Israeli Troops Injured in Land Day Clashes with Palestinians

Two Israeli troops were injured on Saturday 30 March after they fired teargas at Palestinian protesters taking part in Land Day protests to mark the death of six Israeli Arabs who were killed by security forces in 1976.

Palestinians protested in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip on Saturday, with several demonstrators injured in the clashes. Other demonstrators received medical attention for tear gas inhalation during the hour-long violence.

Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad planted an olive tree in the West Bank area known as E1, which Israel has suggested will be its next zone of settlement.

Troops patrolling the border between Israel and the Gaza Strip used live fire to disperse protesters who came close to the fence, the military spokeswoman added. A Gaza hospital source said nobody was hurt.

Peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians stalled in 2010, with Palestinian leaders refusing to return to the negotiating table until Israel halts settlement building in the West Bank. The United Nations General Assembly voted overwhelmingly in November to recognise Palestine as a state, in the face of opposition from Israel and the US.

Israeli Arabs constitute 20 percent of the country's eight million population.

The Israeli government confirmed yesterday that it had granted 0.7 percent of the land it occupies in the West Bank to Palestinians over the past three decades, while it allocated around 38 percent to Jewish settlers.

The Civil Administration, the organisation responsible for the distribution of Israeli "state land", released evidence to the High Court of Justice showing that the land allocation process has become politicised, according to reports in the Israeli newspaper, Haaretz.