[20/March/2010]

RAMALLAH, March 20 (Saba) -- Three Palestinians were injured in clashes with Israeli soldiers and settlers in a village near the West Bank city of Nablus Saturday, witnesses said, according to Xinhua.

The witnesses said clashes erupted between residents of a village and Jewish settlers who entered the village.

The settlers called soldiers after villagers hurled rocks at them. The soldiers responded with tear gas and rubber bullets, wounding three residents, one of them seriously, a Xinhua photographer said.

Another three villagers were arrested as well, according to the witnesses.

Palestinians often scuffle with settlers who live in Jewish blocs built in the West Bank. The continuation of Israel's settlement activities, including building in East Jerusalem, complicates efforts to revive peace talks between the two sides.

Meanwhile, tens of Palestinians marched near Israel's fence with the Gaza Strip, protesting a 300-meter-wide buffer zone Israel declared along its borders with the Hamas-controlled coastal enclave.

The demonstration took place in Deir al-Balah town in central Gaza Strip.

Some Palestinian factions, especially the leftist, increased popular resistance against Israel as Islamic Hamas movement maintains a fragile ceasefire with the Jewish state.

Saba