Israeli troops take position during clashes with Palestinians in the occupied West Bank. (The Palestinian Information Center)

Ramallah, May 16 (RHC)-- Dozens of Palestinians have been shot and wounded when Israeli troops opened fire at a demonstration commemorating the 74th anniversary of the ‘Nakba’ (Day of Catastrophe), in the occupied West Bank.

The shooting took place near the northern entrance to the city of al-Bireh, according to Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS), leaving 45 Palestinians injured.

Violent clashes also broke out on Sunday afternoon between young Palestinian men and Israeli regime forces in Ramallah, al-Quds and Tulkarem.  The regime troops also stormed at the al-Quds University campus and fired tear gas and stunned grenades to disperse the students.

Also, the regime forces forcibly took away at least three Palestinians during a series of raids in al-Quds.

On May 15, 1948, Israel was established as a Jewish-majority state at the expense of the forced expulsion of nearly 800,000 Palestinians.  The day has been commemorated annually as the ‘Nakba’.  It also refers to the systematic ethnic cleansing of two thirds of the Palestinian population by Zionist paramilitaries between 1947 and 1949.

The 74th anniversary of Nakba Day comes just a few days after the Israeli regime forces murdered veteran Palestinian journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, whose tragic death sent shock waves across the region, drawing global condemnations.