What’s happening in Israel and the Palestinian territories today
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Version 0 of 1. Here's a quick catch-up on the tensions in the region. Check out the timeline and map for more information. Israel deployed troops to the Gaza Strip in response to an increase in rocket fire. The Israeli army has been pounding the Palestinian territory after 30 rockets were launched from Gaza, according to Israel's estimates. Lt. Col. Peter Lerner, an Israeli army spokesman, told The Washington Post that 15 targets in Gaza were hit and that the hope was to see a "de-escalation of violence." This is some of the worst violence between the two sides in as many years. After the death of a 16-year-old Palestinian in what many are calling a "revenge killing" in response to the slaying of three Israeli teens, street battles broke out between Palestinian protesters and Israeli security forces, with Palestinians hurling firebombs and stones and security forces using rubber bullets and tear gas. Seven Palestinians have been killed. Almost 200 have been wounded and more than 400 arrested. Israeli police have not determined whether the death of the Palestinian teen was a "nationalistic or a criminal act." The body was badly burned, so the results of the postmortem remain inconclusive. Palestinian teen's funeral will take place tonight. The funeral was reportedly delayed because of the postmortem examination. Mourning tent next to the house of murdered Palestinian teenager #skybreaking pic.twitter.com/eAK0udWevl — Sherine Tadros (@SherineT) July 3, 2014 Mourning tent next to the house of murdered Palestinian teenager #skybreaking pic.twitter.com/eAK0udWevl — Sherine Tadros (@SherineT) July 3, 2014 Demonstrations against anti-Arab protests were held in Jerusalem. In response to anti-Arab protests and attacks on Arabs by a Jewish mob Tuesday, hundreds gathered in Jerusalem to rally against the calls for revenge. Israel's chief rabbi, David Lau, also was in attendance and said vengeful acts could destabilize the region.
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