Dozens of Palestinians have been injured in clashes with Israeli soldiers in the occupied West Bank while protesting in solidarity with six Palestinian men who succeeded in escaping a high-security Israeli prison earlier this week.
Relatives of Palestinian convicts have been detained as Israel launched a massive search to capture the six men who escaped out of the Gilboa jail on Monday.
Israeli forces fired tear gas, rubber-coated bullets, and live ammunition at crowds who were taking part in rallies on Wednesday evening across various cities in the West Bank, wounding at least 100 people, the Palestinian Red Crescent said.
Hundreds have taken to the streets in Ramallah, Nablus, Bethlehem, and Hebron as well as surrounding towns and villages in support of the six escapees and Palestinian detainees who have been subjected to punitive measures in Israeli prison facilities after the escape, according to the Palestinian Prisoner Society.
Five of the men, who are members of Islamic Jihad, and one of the Fatah groups, were either serving multiple life sentences or were being held without charge, which is illegal under international law.
At the rallies, people chanted “freedom” while waving Palestinian flags.
According to the Palestine Red Crescent, three other Palestinians were injured in occupied East Jerusalem as well, after Israeli forces fired rubber-coated bullets and sound bombs at a sit-in near Damascus Gate.
