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Palestinian student repeatedly hits West Bank wall with axe

Marta Portocarrero
Tuesday 03 November 2015 18:23 GMT
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State of Palestine: Student takes axe to West Bank wall amidst clashes

A student has been filmed repeatedly hitting an axe against a wall that separates the West Bank city of Abu Dis from East Jerusalem.

Others students from the Palestinian Al-Quds University in Abu Dis took similar tools to the wall following clashes with Israeli forces.

The students were protesting against the separation barrier and what they claim is Israeli aggression against Palestinians.

Israel says the barrier, which stretches inside the West Bank, is necessary for security, while Palestinians brand it an "apartheid wall".

According to the AFP, Israeli border police had stormed the university the same day and the clashes erupted when students gathered to demonstrate at the foot of the controversial barrier.

The students reportedly pulled back into the campus, where they threw stones at Israeli border police who approached the gates.

Israeli forces retaliated by firing rubber bullets at the students, using tear gas and stun grenades before entering the university grounds.

The number of wounded in the confrontation was not immediately clear, but Palestinian medics told the AFP that many people were hit by rubber bullets in the upper parts of their bodies, while others suffered from smoke inhalation due to tear gas.

Violence has escalated across the Occupied Palestinian Territories and Israel in recent weeks.

Four Israelis were stabbed in separate attacks on Monday, while a Palestinian teenager who reportedly tried to knife a soldier was shot dead.

According to the Palestinian Health Ministry, since the beginning of last month, 61 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces, with over 2,120 injured.

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