JERUSALEM – Israeli police arrested 10 protesters Saturday after clashes broke out during a demonstration against the separation barrier Israel is building with the West Bank.
Dozens of Palestinians and Israelis gathered at the Jerusalem suburb of Ram, which was cut off from Jerusalem by the barrier. Though much of the barrier is comprised of fences, trenches and surveillance equipment, in Ram it is a towering concrete wall that runs down the center of a major road.
Israeli police fired tear gas and stun grenades at the protesters, some of whom hurled rocks at the Israeli forces, according to police and witnesses. One border policeman was injured when a rock hit him in the head, Jerusalem police spokesman Shmuel Ben Ruby said in a statement.
Israel says the barrier is needed to keep out Palestinian militants. Palestinians say the barrier, which snakes into the West Bank, is an Israeli effort to annex land they want for a future state.
"Nothing will stop us from struggling to put down this wall," said Palestinian lawmaker Mustafa Barghouti, a protest organizer.
Get all the stories you need-to-know from the most powerful name in news delivered first thing every morning to your inbox