In Palestine a day of mourning and a general strike over the Israeli massacre

Palestinians denounce the death of 15 compatriots who were killed in an Israeli shootout yesterday during a protest demanding the return of refugees to their homes, the Anadolu Agency (AA) reported.

Shops across the West Bank, which are under Israeli occupation, were closed, schools and colleges suspended classes, and most of the companies entered a general strike.At least 15 Palestinians from the Gaza Strip were killed and about 1,400 injured when Israeli forces opened fire on demonstrators marking the "Earth Day", a symbol of resistance to the Israeli occupation.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas announced on Saturday a day of grief over the Israeli massacre yesterday."The Palestinian factions have responded to the President's decision to declare a day of mourning for the victims of the Israeli massacre. National and Islamic forces have declared a general strike in all Palestinian territories and have called for demonstrations against the Israeli massacre against our people in the Gaza Strip, "said Wasel Abu Yusuf, a member of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) for Anadolu Agency (AA).

The gatherings on Friday are the beginning of six-month protests that will culminate on May 15, when Palestinians mark the "Nakbu" (Catastrophe), the day Israel was founded.Demonstrators demand that Palestinian refugees be allowed the right to return to towns and villages from which their families fled or were expelled at a time when Israel was in 1948.

• 31 Mar, 2018
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