Child injured as Israeli forces suppress Kufr Qaddoum march

A Palestinian child Saturday was struck with a tear gas canister fired by Israeli forces as the latter violently suppressed a peaceful anti-settlement demonstration in the village of Kufr Qaddoum, east of Qalqilia, said WAFA correspondent.

The child, 8, was struck by a tear gas canister in the head, which necessitated his transfer to hospital for medical treatment.

The child, M’umen Ishtaiwi, was admitted into Rafidia hospital in Nablus, where his condition was described as moderate.

Over seven years ago, the Palestinian residents of Qufr Qaddoum, a peaceful village near Qalqilya in the north of the West Bank, decided to rise against the Israeli military’s closure of a vital and historical village road and demand its reopening.

The Israeli military’s reaction to the peaceful protests usually ends up violent.

The army fires tear gas and rubber-coated metal bullets at the protesters and homes in the village, causing many suffocation and injuries. Raids are usually conducted against the residents during the night to detain activists. Army checkpoints often restrict movement of people, and international solidarity activists are pursued and prevented from joining in the weekly protests.