Hundreds of Palestinians converged on the Gaza Strip’s border fence with Israel on Friday, trying to rip through it before drawing Israeli fire in one of the most violent incidents yet in five weeks of protests.

Three people were killed and over 300 hurt in Friday’s rallies, the Gaza Strip’s Hamas-run health ministry said, as thousands of Palestinians converged on the border with Israel for a fifth round of weekly protests.

In a statement, the Israeli military said it “thwarted” an attempted infiltration by Palestinian protesters.

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It said “hundreds of rioters” tried to burn the fence and enter the Israel. It said the crowd threw explosives, firebombs and rocks, and that troops opened fire “in accordance with the rules of engagement” and halted the crowd.

It released a video showing a young Palestinian man placing a burning tire along the fence in an apparent attempt to set it on fire. In another, a small group lobs stones at an Israeli military vehicle on the other side of the fence.

The footage also showed large numbers of Gazans close to the border fence.

Footage filmed inside Gaza showed youths at a barbed wire fence, being urged to “cut, cut.”

In other incidents, the military said Palestinian crowds rolled burning tires, hurled rocks and flew kites with flaming objects attached with the goal of damaging the fence and other Israeli targets. It also released a photo appearing to show a group of youths tugging at barbed wire along the fence.

Israel has repeatedly expressed concern over the possibility of a mass breach, in which Gazans would stream across with terrorists among them, wreaking havoc. Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar has vowed in the past that protesters would “breach the borders and pray at Al-Aqsa,” referring to the major Muslim shrine in Jerusalem.

Gaza officials said about half of the 300 wounded were hit by live fire, with the other half hurt by tear gas.

Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh visited a protest camp in the southern town of Rafah, vowing larger protests in Gaza, the West Bank, Israel and among Palestinian refugees in other countries on May 15. “Our people will not slow down the protests until they get their rights,” he said.

Haniyeh, who was photographed holding a slingshot, declared that the protests “have confused the enemy” and that they constitute “part of the route to liberation.”

Hamas officials were quoted on Hadashot TV news on Saturday saying they would try to expand the protests to the West Bank in coming weeks, and that they would continue past mid-May when the US is to open its embassy in Jerusalem to coincide with Israel’s 70th anniversary of independence (according to the Gregorian calendar).

Meanwhile a top UN official urged Israel to refrain from using “excessive force” against demonstrators.

The number of protesters appeared to be down from previous weeks. The demonstrations have progressively dwindled, with the first event on March 30 drawing around 30,000 people, and last Friday’s rally managing only around a tenth of that.

The protests, which are backed and encouraged by Hamas, the terror group that rules Gaza, were originally dubbed by their Palestinian organizers as nonviolent, but Hamas, which seeks to destroy Israel, publicly supported the protests and declared that their ultimate goal was to erase the border and liberate Palestine. Rioters have burned tires, hurled firebombs and rocks at Israeli troops, flown flaming kites over the border and repeatedly attempted to sabotage the security fence.

Israel says Hamas uses the marches as cover for terrorist attacks.

The Israeli army says its troops only open fire at demonstrators who engage in violence, or who attempt to breach the barrier separating the territory from Israel. Palestinian videos have emerged that purport to show soldiers shooting protesters who did not pose a threat. The army has accused Hamas of fabricating video footage or releasing only partial clips.

The military also says Hamas is using the protests as cover to damage the border fence and prepare to infiltrate and carry out attacks.

According to Gaza’s health ministry the latest deaths brought the death toll in the border clashes since March 30 to 44, with over 1,500 said injured by live fire.

Hamas acknowledged that five of its terrorists were among the fatalities after the first Friday demonstration, but has since refrained for acknowledging whether its men are among the dead. Israel has identified other fatalities as members of terrorist groups.

The UN rights chief on Friday urged Israeli forces to stop using “excessive force” against the protesters and called for troops who have committed abuses “to be held accountable” for them.

“Every week, we witness instances of use of lethal force against unarmed demonstrators,” the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, said in a statement.

“Warnings by the United Nations and others have seemingly gone unheeded, as the approach of the security forces from week to week does not seem to have changed,” he added. “The staggering number of injuries caused by live ammunition only confirms the sense that excessive force has been used against demonstrators — not once, not twice, but repeatedly.

The statement made no mention of Hamas, and did not at any point condemn violent acts by protesters.

“It is difficult to see how tire-burning or stone-throwing, or even Molotov cocktails thrown from a significant distance at heavily protected security forces in defensive positions can be seen to constitute such threat,” he said.

“I am extremely concerned that by the end of today — and next Friday, and the Friday after that — more unarmed Palestinians who were alive this morning will have been killed, simply because, while exercising their right to protest, they approached a fence, or otherwise attracted the attention of the soldiers on the other side,” Zeid said. “Israel’s failure to consistently prosecute violations committed by members of its security forces, encourages them to use deadly force against their fellow unarmed human beings, even when they present no threat.”

Danny Danon, Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, said in response that “The High Commissioner’s decision to condemn a democracy that is diligently defending its sovereignty, while completely ignoring the terrorists of Hamas as they use children for human shields, provides a tailwind for terror and encourages the continued exploitation of civilians.

“This statement proves once again that the High Commissioner is not focused on human rights, but only with obsessively criticizing Israel,” he adds.

On Thursday the US ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, lashed out at Hamas, accusing the Palestinian terror group of “using children as cannon fodder” at the rallies.

“Anyone who truly cares about children in Gaza should insist that Hamas immediately stop using children as cannon fodder in its conflict with Israel,” Haley told a UN Security Council meeting convened to discuss the situation in the Middle East.

Ahead of the meeting, the Israeli rights group B’Tselem urged the Security Council to protect Palestinians taking part in the demonstrations on the border.

B’Tselem gave a list of names and ages of Palestinians it said were killed by Israel during the demonstrations.

The group described the victims as “unarmed” and said their deaths were “the predictable outcome of the manifestly illegal rules of engagement implemented during the demonstrations, of ordering soldiers to use lethal gunfire against unarmed demonstrators who pose no mortal danger.”

B’Tselem singled out Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman and IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot as being primarily responsible for the deaths.

The group said that any Israeli investigation into the deaths was likely to be “a whitewash,” and would be solely to “forestall and prevent investigations by international bodies.”

The UN’s special envoy to the region, Nickolay Mladenov, told the council that both Israel and Hamas had to do more to prevent the deaths.

“There has also been an increasing number of dangerous incidents at the fence, including the planting of improvised explosive devices — at least one of which has detonated — the throwing of Molotov cocktails, and attempts to breach the fence,” he said.

“Israel must calibrate its use of force and minimize the use of live fire. Lethal force should be used only as a last resort,” he continued. “Hamas and the leaders of the demonstrations must keep protesters away from the Gaza fence and prevent all violent actions and provocations.

The Israeli army says it mainly uses less-lethal means, as well as pinpoint fire against chief instigators. It says its sharpshooters target only those who attack IDF soldiers with stones and Molotov cocktails, actively try to damage the security fence, or attempt to place improvised explosive devices along the security fence that could later be used in attacks against Israeli patrols.

Danon on Thursday also accused Hamas of using innocents as “human shields.”

“Throughout the riots of the past month, Hamas has used innocent Palestinian women and children as human shields, while they cowered behind in safety,” he said. “The terrorists are hiding while allowing, even hoping, for their people to die. This is evil in its purest form.”

He told the international body that Israel does everything in its power to minimize civilian deaths, but that the main goal of the army was to defend the country.

“Israel has an obligation to protect our citizens and we will do so while minimizing civilian casualties to the other side but let me be clear: Israel will never apologize for defending our country,” he said. “It is Hamas that is fully responsible for every Palestinian injury and death that has resulted from these incidents.”

At previous peace talks, the Palestinians have always demanded, along with sovereignty in the West Bank, Gaza, East Jerusalem and the Old City, a “right of return” to Israel for Palestinian refugees who left or were forced out of Israel when it was established. The Palestinians demand this right not only for those of the hundreds of thousands of refugees who are still alive — a figure estimated in the low tens of thousands — but also for their descendants, who number in the millions.

No Israeli government would ever be likely to accept this demand, since it would spell the end of Israel as a Jewish-majority state. Israel’s position is that Palestinian refugees and their descendants would become citizens of a Palestinian state at the culmination of the peace process, just as Jews who fled or were forced out of Middle Eastern countries by hostile governments became citizens of Israel.</s>Hundreds of Palestinians have converged on the Gaza Strip’s border fence with Israel, trying to rip through it before drawing heavy Israeli fire in one of the most violent incidents yet in five weeks of protests.

Hundreds of Palestinians have converged on the Gaza Strip’s border fence with Israel, trying to rip through it before drawing heavy Israeli fire in one of the most violent incidents yet in five weeks of protests.

At least 38 protesters have been killed by Israeli live fire and more than 2,100 wounded in the weekly protests since they began on March 30. Israel has rejected the international criticism, saying it is defending its sovereign border and accusing Gaza’s Hamas leaders, who are organising the protests, of using the crowds as cover to carry out attacks.

In Friday’s unrest, a large crowd gathered a few hundred metres from the border, with some throwing stones and setting tyres on fire in what has become a weekly occurrence. Late in the afternoon, dozens of young men broke away from the larger protest, moving south about 200 metres and approaching the fence.

The crowd then tried to break through the fence with hooks and wire cutters when Israeli forces opened fire. Witnesses said three protesters briefly crossed into Israel and turned around. Hundreds more ran to the scene, and the numbers quickly grew to several thousand. Israeli armoured vehicles sped to the site and fired barrages of tear gas. As gunfire erupted, the crowd dispersed.

It said “hundreds of rioters” tried to burn the fence and enter Israel. It said the crowd threw explosives, firebombs and rocks, and that troops opened fire “in accordance with the rules of engagement” and halted the crowd.

It released a video showing a young Palestinian man placing a burning tyre along the fence in an apparent attempt to set it on fire. In another, a small group lobs stones at an Israeli military vehicle on the other side of the fence. In other incidents, the military said Palestinian crowds rolled burning tyres, hurled rocks and flew kites with flaming objects attached with the goal of damaging the fence and other Israeli targets.

It also released a photo appearing to show a group of youths tugging at barbed wire along the fence. The marches, aimed in part at trying to break a decade-old border blockade, have been organised by Gaza’s militant Hamas rulers but have also been driven by widespread despair in the coastal territory of two million people.

Gaza organisers say the marches are also pressing for the “right of return” of refugees and their descendants to what is now Israel. Two-thirds of Gaza residents are descendants of refugees who fled or were expelled from properties during the war surrounding Israel’s creation in 1948. The protests are to culminate on May 15, the anniversary of Israel’s creation. Hamas organisers have made conflicting statements about whether they plan a mass border breach at some point.

Israel has come under heavy international criticism for allegedly using excessive force. Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, the UN high commissioner for human rights, said Israeli troops have not heeded warnings by the UN and others, repeatedly using lethal force against unarmed protesters in the past month. Gaza health officials say that four minors, including a 14-year-old boy, have been among the dead.

“The loss of life is deplorable, and the staggering number of injuries caused by live ammunition only confirms the sense that excessive force has been used against demonstrators — not once, not twice, but repeatedly,” the commissioner said. Israel’s UN ambassador, Danny Danon, said Israel is “diligently defending its sovereignty” and accused Mr Zeid of encouraging Hamas’s “exploitation of civilians”.</s>(GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip) — Hundreds of Palestinians converged on the Gaza Strip’s border fence with Israel on Friday, trying to rip through it before drawing heavy Israeli fire in one of the most violent incidents yet in five weeks of protests. Three Palestinians were killed and dozens were reported wounded.

The violence came shortly after a top U.N. official urged Israel to refrain from using excessive force against the protesters.

At least 38 protesters have been killed by Israeli live fire and more than 1,600 wounded in the weekly protests since they began March 30. Israel has rejected the international criticism, saying it is defending its sovereign border and accusing Gaza’s Hamas leaders, who are organizing the protests, of using the crowds as cover to carry out attacks.

In Friday’s unrest, a large crowd gathered a few hundred meters (yards) from the border, with some throwing stones and setting tires on fire in what has become a weekly occurrence.

Late in the afternoon, dozens of young men broke away from the larger protest, moving south about 200 meters (yards) and approaching the fence. The crowd then tried to break through the fence with hooks and wire cutters when Israeli forces opened fire. Witnesses said three protesters briefly crossed into Israel and turned around.

Hundreds of additional protesters ran to the scene, and the numbers quickly grew to several thousand. Israeli armored vehicles sped to the site and fired barrages of tear gas. As gunfire erupted, the crowd dispersed. A dozen Palestinian ambulances jammed a dirt road lining up to evacuate the wounded. Some in the crowd shouted “shahid,” or “martyr” as bodies were taken away on stretchers.

Palestinian health officials reported three people killed and 611 wounded, including 138 hit by live fire in incidents along the border throughout the day.

In a statement, the Israeli military said it had “thwarted” an attempted infiltration by Palestinian protesters.

It said “hundreds of rioters” tried to burn the fence and enter the Israel. It said the crowd threw explosives, firebombs and rocks, and that troops opened fire “in accordance with the rules of engagement” and halted the crowd. It released a video showing a young Palestinian man placing a burning tire along the fence in an apparent attempt to set it on fire. In another, a small group lobs stones at an Israeli military vehicle on the other side of the fence.

In other incidents, the military said Palestinian crowds rolled burning tires, hurled rocks and flew kites with flaming objects attached with the goal of damaging the fence and other Israeli targets. It also released a photo appearing to show a group of youths tugging at barbed wire along the fence.

The marches, aimed in part at trying to break a decade-old border blockade, have been organized by Gaza’s militant Hamas rulers but have also been driven by widespread despair in the coastal territory of 2 million people.

Gaza organizers say the marches are also pressing for the “right of return” of refugees and their descendants to what is now Israel. Two-thirds of Gaza residents are descendants of refugees who fled or were expelled from properties during the war surrounding Israel’s creation in 1948. The protests are to culminate on May 15, the anniversary of Israel’s creation. Hamas organizers have made conflicting statements about whether they plan a mass border breach at some point.

Hamas’ supreme leader, Ismail Haniyeh, visited a protest camp in the southern town of Rafah, vowing larger protests in Gaza, the West Bank, Israel and among Palestinian refugees in other countries on May 15. “Our people will not slow down the protests until they get their rights,” he said.

The Israeli military has repeatedly said it will not allow Gazans to burst across the border. Israeli communities are located just a few hundred meters away.

However, Israel has come under heavy international criticism for allegedly using excessive force.

Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, the U.N. high commissioner for human rights, said Israeli troops have not heeded warnings by the United Nations and others, repeatedly using lethal force against unarmed protesters in the past month.

Gaza health officials say that four minors, including a 14-year-old boy, have been among the dead.

“The loss of life is deplorable, and the staggering number of injuries caused by live ammunition only confirms the sense that excessive force has been used against demonstrators — not once, not twice, but repeatedly,” the commissioner said.

Israel’s U.N. ambassador, Danny Danon, said Israel is “diligently defending its sovereignty” and accused Zeid of encouraging Hamas’ “exploitation of civilians.” He said the commissioner is “not focused on human rights, but only with obsessively criticizing Israel.”

Thousands have taken part in the Friday demonstrations from five protest tent camps, each set up several hundred meters (yards) from the border fence. Small groups usually move toward the fence, setting tires ablaze to hamper the vision of the security forces while others throw stones or firebombs.

Israeli soldiers, including snipers taking cover behind sand berms, have responded by firing tear gas, rubber-coated steel pellets and live rounds.

Israel’s military has said troops are under orders to target “instigators,” but has also warned that anyone approaching or trying to damage the fence risks his life.

Rights groups have said such open-fire rules are unlawful because they allow soldiers to use potentially lethal force in situations where their lives are not in danger.

Israeli officials have said that some of the protesters in recent weeks tried to damage the border fence or plant explosives along it. Others have tried to set Israeli fields on fire on the other side of the fence by hurling improvised explosives or firebombs, or flying the flaming kites.

A group of Palestinian activists calling themselves “the tires unit” arrived Friday on a truck laden with old tires. A van mounted with loudspeakers followed the truck with chants and applause. Tires were set ablaze, filling the air with thick smoke. With hooks and a long rope, the activists pulled at parts of the barbed wire adjacent to the fence.

Israel and Egypt imposed the Gaza blockade in 2007, in response to a violent takeover of the territory by Hamas, which had won Palestinian parliament elections a year earlier. The blockade has gutted Gaza’s economy, driving up unemployment and leaving two-thirds of young people without jobs.

Hamas’ Interior Ministry announced that Egypt had agreed to open the Rafah border crossing for three days, beginning Saturday. The temporary opening is the second this month.</s>(GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip) — Hundreds of Palestinians converged on the Gaza Strip’s border fence with Israel on Friday, trying to rip through it before drawing heavy Israeli fire in one of the most violent incidents yet in five weeks of protests. Three Palestinians were killed and dozens were reported wounded.

The violence came shortly after a top U.N. official urged Israel to refrain from using excessive force against the protesters.

At least 38 protesters have been killed by Israeli live fire and more than 1,600 wounded in the weekly protests since they began March 30. Israel has rejected the international criticism, saying it is defending its sovereign border and accusing Gaza’s Hamas leaders, who are organizing the protests, of using the crowds as cover to carry out attacks.

In Friday’s unrest, a large crowd gathered a few hundred meters (yards) from the border, with some throwing stones and setting tires on fire in what has become a weekly occurrence.

Late in the afternoon, dozens of young men broke away from the larger protest, moving south about 200 meters (yards) and approaching the fence. The crowd then tried to break through the fence with hooks and wire cutters when Israeli forces opened fire. Witnesses said three protesters briefly crossed into Israel and turned around.

Hundreds of additional protesters ran to the scene, and the numbers quickly grew to several thousand. Israeli armored vehicles sped to the site and fired barrages of tear gas. As gunfire erupted, the crowd dispersed. A dozen Palestinian ambulances jammed a dirt road lining up to evacuate the wounded. Some in the crowd shouted “shahid,” or “martyr” as bodies were taken away on stretchers.

Palestinian health officials reported three people killed and 611 wounded, including 138 hit by live fire in incidents along the border throughout the day.

In a statement, the Israeli military said it had “thwarted” an attempted infiltration by Palestinian protesters.

It said “hundreds of rioters” tried to burn the fence and enter the Israel. It said the crowd threw explosives, firebombs and rocks, and that troops opened fire “in accordance with the rules of engagement” and halted the crowd. It released a video showing a young Palestinian man placing a burning tire along the fence in an apparent attempt to set it on fire. In another, a small group lobs stones at an Israeli military vehicle on the other side of the fence.

In other incidents, the military said Palestinian crowds rolled burning tires, hurled rocks and flew kites with flaming objects attached with the goal of damaging the fence and other Israeli targets. It also released a photo appearing to show a group of youths tugging at barbed wire along the fence.

The marches, aimed in part at trying to break a decade-old border blockade, have been organized by Gaza’s militant Hamas rulers but have also been driven by widespread despair in the coastal territory of 2 million people.

Gaza organizers say the marches are also pressing for the “right of return” of refugees and their descendants to what is now Israel. Two-thirds of Gaza residents are descendants of refugees who fled or were expelled from properties during the war surrounding Israel’s creation in 1948. The protests are to culminate on May 15, the anniversary of Israel’s creation. Hamas organizers have made conflicting statements about whether they plan a mass border breach at some point.

Hamas’ supreme leader, Ismail Haniyeh, visited a protest camp in the southern town of Rafah, vowing larger protests in Gaza, the West Bank, Israel and among Palestinian refugees in other countries on May 15. “Our people will not slow down the protests until they get their rights,” he said.

The Israeli military has repeatedly said it will not allow Gazans to burst across the border. Israeli communities are located just a few hundred meters away.

However, Israel has come under heavy international criticism for allegedly using excessive force.

Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, the U.N. high commissioner for human rights, said Israeli troops have not heeded warnings by the United Nations and others, repeatedly using lethal force against unarmed protesters in the past month.

Gaza health officials say that four minors, including a 14-year-old boy, have been among the dead.

“The loss of life is deplorable, and the staggering number of injuries caused by live ammunition only confirms the sense that excessive force has been used against demonstrators — not once, not twice, but repeatedly,” the commissioner said.

Israel’s U.N. ambassador, Danny Danon, said Israel is “diligently defending its sovereignty” and accused Zeid of encouraging Hamas’ “exploitation of civilians.” He said the commissioner is “not focused on human rights, but only with obsessively criticizing Israel.”

Thousands have taken part in the Friday demonstrations from five protest tent camps, each set up several hundred meters (yards) from the border fence. Small groups usually move toward the fence, setting tires ablaze to hamper the vision of the security forces while others throw stones or firebombs.

Israeli soldiers, including snipers taking cover behind sand berms, have responded by firing tear gas, rubber-coated steel pellets and live rounds.

Israel’s military has said troops are under orders to target “instigators,” but has also warned that anyone approaching or trying to damage the fence risks his life.

Rights groups have said such open-fire rules are unlawful because they allow soldiers to use potentially lethal force in situations where their lives are not in danger.

Israeli officials have said that some of the protesters in recent weeks tried to damage the border fence or plant explosives along it. Others have tried to set Israeli fields on fire on the other side of the fence by hurling improvised explosives or firebombs, or flying the flaming kites.

A group of Palestinian activists calling themselves “the tires unit” arrived Friday on a truck laden with old tires. A van mounted with loudspeakers followed the truck with chants and applause. Tires were set ablaze, filling the air with thick smoke. With hooks and a long rope, the activists pulled at parts of the barbed wire adjacent to the fence.

Israel and Egypt imposed the Gaza blockade in 2007, in response to a violent takeover of the territory by Hamas, which had won Palestinian parliament elections a year earlier. The blockade has gutted Gaza’s economy, driving up unemployment and leaving two-thirds of young people without jobs.

Hamas’ Interior Ministry announced that Egypt had agreed to open the Rafah border crossing for three days, beginning Saturday. The temporary opening is the second this month.</s>One man was killed and at least 170 people were wounded in the fifth consecutive week of Palestinian protests on the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel, according to the Palestinian health ministry.

The ministry said that 45 of the wounded were hit by live fire from Israeli forces.

The Israeli army said that over 10,000 Palestinians participated in the protests, which included rolling burning tires, hurled rocks, airborne “kites with flaming objects attached to them” and attempts to burn and breach the security fence that marks the border.

“Hundreds of rioters attempted to infiltrate into Israeli territory and burn the security fence adjacent to the Karni Crossing in the northern Gaza Strip,” the army said in a statement. “The rioters approached the security fence and hurled explosive devices, grenades, firebombs and rocks and tried to light the security fence on fire.”

Palestinian media reported that six of the wounded are journalists. A reporter, Abdel Rahman Alkahlout, was shot in the leg by Israeli forces, according to Palestinian reports, and a photographer, Hashem Hamada, was hit in the head by a tear gas canister.

The demonstrations, collectively dubbed the Great March of Return, originally were scheduled to culminate in a massive march of thousands on May 15, the date that commemorates Israel’s declaration of independence in 1948, called Nakba Day, or Catastrophe Day, by Palestinians.

The Gaza Strip, a tiny, beleaguered enclave bounded by Egypt, Israel and the Mediterranean Sea, has survived under an onerous blockade since 2007, when Hamas, a Palestinian Islamist militia, wrested control of the territory from the Palestinian Authority based in the West Bank, to its north.

Ismail Haniyeh, a Hamas leader in Gaza, announced Wednesday that the weekly protests will continue after May 15 and into the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which starts in the evening of May 15.

“The Palestinian people will demonstrate throughout the month of Ramadan to deal with the many challenges facing us and first of all, the peace plan promoted by U.S. President Donald Trump, the so-called ‘Deal of the Century,’ ” Haniyeh said.

Palestinian anger at the United States has escalated since Trump’s December announcement that the American Embassy would move from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem on May 14, in honor of Israel’s founding, as part of his recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.

Israel has long sought the move and the recognition. Trump has touted his Middle East peace plan, negotiated by his son-in-law and senior advisor, Jared Kushner, since the start of his term in office, calling it “the ultimate deal,” but Israeli, Palestinian and American officials have yet to see it.

“We will turn this deal into a resounding slap in the face for the administration in Washington and anyone who weaves conspiracies against the Palestinian people,” Haniyeh added.

On Tuesday, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reported that 42 Palestinians have been killed in the weekly marches and 5,511 wounded. No Israeli casualties have been reported.

Israel has faced a growing international outcry over its use of live fire to contain the protests, which have included improvised bombs and numerous attempts to breach the Israeli border fence.

U.N. Human Rights chief Zeid Ra’ad Hussein said Friday that Israel must explain its use of “excessive force” in Gaza, where “the number of injuries is staggering.”

A spokesman for the Israeli military said Thursday that its “troops operate in accordance with clear rules of engagement that are tailored to these scenarios.”

Amnesty International published a statement Friday calling for an embargo on arms sales to Israel and claiming that “Israel is carrying out a murderous assault against protesting Palestinians, with its armed forces killing and maiming demonstrators who pose no imminent threat to them.”

On Thursday, U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley denounced the participation of unarmed civilians in the protests, saying, “Anyone who truly cares about children in Gaza should insist that Hamas immediately stop using children as cannon fodder in its conflict with Israel.”

Addressing a U.N. Security Council meeting, Haley said, “It’s difficult to think of a more cowardly act — even for a terrorist — than hiding behind innocent civilians.”

Several journalists have been killed and wounded since March 30, when the protests started. Yasser Murtaja, a Palestinian photographer wearing a vest emblazoned “Press,” was killed while covering the march on April 6. Ahmed Abu Hussein, another photographer, died this week of injuries sustained in the April 13 march. The Israeli army says it is investigating the circumstances of their deaths but has yet to issue any findings.

On Thursday, an Israeli army spokesman said that it “does not aim to harm members of the press.”

Despite the fact that bullet wounds caused the deaths of Murtaja and Hussein, the spokesman postulated that “if the journalists in question had stumbled and fell or inhaled tear gas, which is one of the riot dispersal means used, it is impossible for the [Israeli army] to prevent such injuries. We encourage journalists to act with caution in the areas in which Hamas carries out terrorist acts and leads violent riots.”</s>Abdul Salam Baker, 29, was shot and killed near Khan Younis in the south of Gaza, the ministry said. Hospitals received the bodies of two other men, the ministry said. Both are currently unidentified.

Nearly 150 Palestinians were injured by live fire in the demonstrations Friday, according to the ministry.

The Israeli army said in a statement Friday that 10,000 Palestinians took part in what it called riots in five locations along the fence that separates Gaza from Israel, and that hundreds attempted to enter Israel by burning the fence adjacent to the now-disused Karni border crossing point.

"Rioters approached the security fence and hurled explosive devices, grenades, firebombs and rocks and tried to light the security fence on fire," the statement said.

This is the fifth straight Friday that Palestinians have participated in the "March of Return" along the border fence with Israel. They are calling for an end to Israel's blockade of the territory and say they want to highlight their right to return to lands their families fled or were expelled from when Israel was founded 70 years ago. Since the protests began, 45 Palestinians have been killed, according to a CNN count, based on figures provided by the Palestinian Ministry of Health. No Israeli soldiers have been killed or injured. Israel says Hamas is playing a leading role in the protests. Last week, the Israeli military dropped leaflets over parts of Gaza, in which it accused the militant group of exploiting the protests to pursue its own interests. Hanan Ashrawi, a member of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) Executive Committee, said earlier this month that the Israeli military's responses were "unlawful violations of international law and international humanitarian law." In recent weeks, 14 of the 15 members of the UN Security Council have supported statements calling for an independent inquiry into violence along the Israel-Gaza border. In each case, the United States has been the sole member to block the statements from being issued.</s>The Latest on protests at Gaza border with Israel (all times local):

The Israeli military has responded to the reported violence at the border fence east of Gaza City, saying its troops "thwarted" an attempted infiltration by Palestinian protesters.

In a statement Friday, the army said "hundreds of rioters" tried to burn the fence and infiltrate Israel. It says the crowd approached the fence and threw grenades, explosives, firebombs and rocks as they tried to set the fence on fire. It says troops opened fire "in accordance with the rules of engagement" and halted the crowd.

The military says in other incidents Friday, Palestinian crowds rolled burning tires, hurled rocks and flown kites with flaming objects attached with the goal of damaging the fence and other Israeli targets.

It also released a photo appearing to show a group of youths tugging at barbed wire along the fence.

Gaza's Health Ministry says a Palestinian has been killed by Israeli gunfire while trying to breach the Gaza border.

The ministry said three others were wounded in the incident Friday afternoon east of Gaza City.

Gaza's Islamic militant rulers have called for a mass rally at the border every Friday as part of a weeks-long campaign of protests against a decade-old blockade of the territory.

Israel is closely guarding the fence and has warned it will not tolerate attempts to breach it. Israel's military has said troops are under orders to target "instigators," but has also warned that anyone approaching or trying to damage the fence risks his life.

Gaza's Health Ministry said 50 people were wounded earlier in the day, including at least 16 by live fire.

Hundreds of Palestinian protesters have gathered next to the fence along the Israeli border east of Gaza City.

Heavy Israeli gunfire was heard Friday afternoon as the crowd broke away from a larger protest and moved toward the fence. Witnesses said at least three protesters broke through the fence and briefly entered Israel before running back.

There were no immediate details on injuries, but ambulances rushed to the scene and took away dozens of wounded.

The Israeli military had no immediate information on the incident.

The U.N. high commissioner for human rights has urged Israel to refrain from using excessive force against Palestinians who have been staging weekly mass protests on the Gaza border with Israel.

Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein made his appeal ahead of a fifth round of Gaza marches on Friday, aimed in part at trying to break a decade-long blockade of the territory.

The commissioner says Israel has not heeded warnings by the U.N. and others, after troops used lethal force against unarmed protesters, killing 35 Palestinians and wounding more than 1,500.

Since late March, thousands have demonstrated near the border every Friday, some throwing stones or burning tires. Israel says Gaza's rulers from the militant Hamas group are using protests as cover for attacks on the border, including by planting explosives.</s>The violence came shortly after a top UN official urged Israel to refrain from using excessive force against the protesters.

The Israeli military accused Gaza's Hamas leaders of orchestrating what it called a "serious and irregular" attack and said it would not tolerate similar activity in the future.

GAZA, Palestinian Territory—Hundreds of Palestinians converged on the Gaza Strip's border fence with Israel on Friday, trying to burn and rip through it before drawing heavy Israeli fire in one of the most violent incidents yet in five weeks of protests. Three Palestinians were killed and dozens were reported wounded.

At least 38 protesters have been killed by Israeli live fire and more than 1,600 wounded in the weekly protests since they began March 30. Israel has rejected the international criticism, saying it is defending its sovereign border and accusing Gaza's Hamas leaders, who are organizing the protests, of using the crowds as cover to carry out attacks.

In Friday's unrest, a large crowd gathered a few hundred metres from the border, with some throwing stones and setting tires on fire in what has become a weekly occurrence.

Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus, a military spokesperson, said the event was unlike anything Israel has seen over the past month. He said an estimated 500 to 700 protesters carried out a "deliberate attack" on the fence, throwing firebombs and explosives, trying to set it on fire with burning tires and attempting to tear it down with a metal hook and winch system.

In a statement, the Israeli military said it had "thwarted" an attempted infiltration by Palestinian protesters and opened fire "in accordance with the rules of engagement" to halt the crowd. It released a video showing a young Palestinian man placing a burning tire along the fence in an apparent attempt to set it on fire.

Palestinian health officials reported three people killed and 611 wounded, including 138 hit by live fire in incidents along the border throughout the day.

Hundreds of additional protesters ran to the scene, and Israeli armoured vehicles sped to the site and fired barrages of tear gas. As gunfire erupted, the crowd dispersed. A dozen Palestinian ambulances jammed a dirt road lining up to evacuate the wounded. Some in the crowd shouted "shahid," or "martyr," as bodies were taken away on stretchers.

Late in the afternoon, dozens of young men broke away from the larger protest, moving south about 200 metres and approaching the fence. The crowd then tried to break through the fence with hooks and wire cutters when Israeli forces opened fire. Witnesses said three protesters briefly crossed into Israel and turned around.

He said the incident was notable in the number of protesters, the speed they moved and the "audacity with which they attacked." He claimed Hamas leaders had been in the area encouraging the crowd.

"We saw a totally irregular event and severe attack, which was clearly orchestrated by Hamas leaders on the ground who were urging the rioters on, and to run toward the fence, to assault the fence," he said. He said Israel would not tolerate Hamas attempts "to use civilians as human shields and as a disguise for terrorists trying to infiltrate into Israel."

The marches, aimed in part at trying to break a decade-old border blockade, have been organized by Gaza's militant Hamas rulers but have also been driven by widespread despair in the coastal territory of 2 million people.

Gaza organizers say the marches are also pressing for the "right of return" of refugees and their descendants to what is now Israel. Two-thirds of Gaza residents are descendants of refugees who fled or were expelled from properties during the war surrounding Israel's creation in 1948. The protests are to culminate on May 15, the anniversary of Israel's creation.

Hamas said late Friday that Israeli aircraft hit two boats at Gaza's port. Witnesses said the explosions severely damaged the boats.

The boats were being prepared to sail beyond the six-nautical-mile limit set by Israel in protest of the maritime restrictions on Gaza, a Hamas activist familiar with the issue said, speaking on condition of anonymity because the venture had not yet been announced.

The boats were to sail May 15 as part of the mass protests.

Hamas organizers have made conflicting statements about whether they plan a mass border breach at some point.

Hamas' supreme leader, Ismail Haniyeh, visited a protest camp in the southern town of Rafah, vowing larger protests in Gaza, the West Bank, Israel and among Palestinian refugees in other countries on May 15. "Our people will not slow down the protests until they get their rights," he said.

The Israeli military has repeatedly said it will not allow Gazans to burst across the border. Israeli communities are located just a few hundred metres away.

However, Israel has come under heavy international criticism for allegedly using excessive force.

Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, the UN high commissioner for human rights, said Israeli troops have not heeded warnings by the UN and others, repeatedly using lethal force against unarmed protesters in the past month.

Gaza health officials say that four minors, including a 14-year-old boy, have been among the dead.

"The loss of life is deplorable, and the staggering number of injuries caused by live ammunition only confirms the sense that excessive force has been used against demonstrators — not once, not twice, but repeatedly," the commissioner said.

Israel's UN ambassador, Danny Danon, said Israel is "diligently defending its sovereignty" and accused Zeid of encouraging Hamas' "exploitation of civilians." He said the commissioner is "not focused on human rights, but only with obsessively criticizing Israel."

Thousands have taken part in the Friday demonstrations from five protest tent camps, each set up several hundred metres from the border fence. Small groups usually move toward the fence, setting tires ablaze to hamper the vision of the security forces while others throw stones or firebombs.

Israeli soldiers, including snipers taking cover behind sand berms, have responded by firing tear gas, rubber-coated steel pellets and live rounds.

Israel's military has said troops are under orders to target "instigators," but has also warned that anyone approaching or trying to damage the fence risks his life.

Rights groups have said such open-fire rules are unlawful because they allow soldiers to use potentially lethal force in situations where their lives are not in danger.

Israeli officials have said that some of the protesters in recent weeks tried to damage the border fence or plant explosives along it. Others have tried to set Israeli fields on fire on the other side of the fence by hurling improvised explosives or firebombs, or flying the flaming kites.

A group of Palestinian activists calling themselves "the tires unit" arrived Friday on a truck laden with old tires. A van mounted with loudspeakers followed the truck with chants and applause. Tires were set ablaze, filling the air with thick smoke. With hooks and a long rope, the activists pulled at parts of the barbed wire adjacent to the fence.

Israel and Egypt imposed the Gaza blockade in 2007, in response to a violent takeover of the territory by Hamas, which had won Palestinian parliament elections a year earlier. The blockade has gutted Gaza's economy.

Hamas' Interior Ministry announced that Egypt had agreed to open the Rafah border crossing for three days, beginning Saturday. The temporary opening is the second this month.
Three Palestinians are killed and over 300 hurt according to the Hamas-run health ministry as thousands protested. The Israeli army says that hundreds of rioters tried to infiltrate Israel, attempted to start fires in a number of ways, and attacked the security fence with explosive devices, grenades, and rocks.