1 Dies, 4 Hurt on Anniversary of Hebron Massacre
Israeli troops fired on stone-throwing Palestinian youths Tuesday on the anniversary of the Hebron mosque massacre, killing one protester and wounding at least four.
The clash at a refugee camp south of Hebron came as 300 Palestinians in the city attended a special prayer service at the Tomb of the Patriarchs, where Jewish settler Baruch Goldstein shot and killed about 30 Muslim worshipers last year.
“I’m calling on our people to defend the holy shrines,” Sheik Taysir Tamimi, a leader of the militant Islamic Resistance Movement, known as Hamas, told worshipers.
The tomb, built over the graves of biblical patriarchs Abraham, Jacob and Isaac, is sacred to both Muslims and Jews. Since the site was reopened following last year’s massacre, Muslims and Jews have been entering through separate gates and praying in different halls.
Israeli security forces, placed on high alert after receiving warnings that Palestinian militants planned attacks, deployed reinforcements throughout Hebron on Tuesday.
The worst clash took place in the Al Fawar refugee camp south of Hebron, where a 16-year-old stone thrower was critically wounded by Israeli army gunfire. Dozens more Palestinians then took to the streets and stoned soldiers. The Israeli troops opened fire, killing 16-year-old Sami Najar and wounding three others, according to hospital officials and witnesses.
The massacre at the tomb occurred Feb. 25, 1994. The anniversary was marked by Muslims on Tuesday in accordance with the Islamic calendar.
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