Ramallah, October 30 (RHC)-- Israeli forces have attacked Palestinian protesters who took to the streets of the occupied West Bank and al-Quds to condemn the Israeli policy of seizing their land for the expansion of settlements.  According to local media reports, dozens of people were left injured.

On Friday, clashes occurred between Palestinian protesters and Israeli forces in the flashpoint town of Beita, south of the West Bank city of Nablus.  The Palestine Red Crescent ambulance service said seven Palestinians had been hit by rubber bullets, and 30 others suffered breathing difficulties due to inhaling tear gas.  According to the Red Crescent, a foreign supporter of the Palestinians also sustained injuries during the clashes.

Since May, Beita has seen intensified clashes between Israeli forces and Palestinians protesting against a settlement outpost that has been established on Sobeih Mountain by settlers under the protection of Israeli forces.

Israeli forces also dispersed a weekly anti-settlement protest in Kafr Qaddum, east of Qalqilya City, in the West Bank, using tear gas and rubber bullets.  Two young Palestinian men were hit by rubber bullets and tens of others suffered breathing difficulties from toxic fumes.

Earlier this month, Israeli forces began digging operations in the area amid attempts to seize and judaize it.  Israel occupied East al-Quds, the West Bank, and the Gaza Strip — territories the Palestinians want for a future state — during the six-day Arab-Israeli war in 1967. It later had to withdraw from Gaza.

More than 600,000 Israelis live in over 230 settlements built since the 1967 occupation of the Palestinian territories of the West Bank and East al-Quds. All the settlements are illegal under international law. The United Nations Security Council has condemned the settlement activities in several resolutions.