Palestinians bury 3 people martyred by Israel

By Qais Abu Samra and Hidaya al-Saidi

RAMALLAH/ GAZA CITY

Hundreds of Palestinians on Saturday paid farewell to three people martyred by Israeli army fire in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

Mourners attended the funeral of Ahmed Hamed, 16, who was shot dead by Israeli forces in Ramallah on Friday for allegedly hurling stones at soldiers.

Palestinian mourners also laid Hamdan al-Arda, 60, to his rest in the town of Arrabeh in Jenin.

Al-Arda was shot dead by Israeli forces more than one month ago for allegedly carrying out a ramming attack in the city of Al-Bireh. His body was held by Israeli forces, which handed it over to Palestinian authorities on Friday.

In Gaza, scores of Palestinians buried Ihab Abed, 25, who was martyred by Israeli fire in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip during anti-occupation protests on Friday.

Since Palestinians began holding almost-daily rallies along the buffer zone in March of last year, more than 250 protesters have been killed -- and thousands more injured -- by Israeli army gunfire.

Demonstrators demand the right of Palestinian refugees to return to their homes in historical Palestine from which they were driven in 1948 to make way for the new state of Israel.

They also demand an end to Israel’s 12-year blockade of the Gaza Strip, which has gutted the coastal enclave’s economy and deprived its roughly two million inhabitants of many basic commodities.