Israel/Palestinian Terr.: Israel-Gaza border violence ahead of Nakba Day May 15 /update 19

Event

Israel Defense Forces (IDF) personnel killed one Palestinian protester and wounded some 170 others as demonstrations continued at several locations along the Israel-Gaza border for the seventh consecutive Friday on May 11. Approximately 15,000 Palestinians took part in Friday's protests, with some reportedly throwing rocks, burning tires, and flying burning objects at IDF personnel using kites. IDF troops responded with tear gas and live ammunition. Related clashes between Palestinian protesters and IDF troops took place in Nablus.

The six-week protest campaign is expected to crescendo and culminate with massive demonstrations along the Israel-Gaza border, the West Bank, and Jerusalem on Monday, May 14, over the moving of the US Embassy to Jerusalem on the same day and in commemoration of Nakba Day on May 15. Clashes between Palestinian protesters and IDF troops and associated casualties are expected in the coming days.

Context

Large-scale Palestinian demonstrations have recently taken place in the Gaza Strip as part of a six-week tent city protest along the Israel-Gaza border. Dozens of Palestinians have been killed and thousands of others wounded in clashes with IDF personnel since the protests began on March 30. Smaller related protests have taken place in the West Bank.

The ongoing six-week protest period is scheduled to end with a mass march to the Israeli border on May 15 to coincide with the Nakba ("catastrophe"), which is commemorated annually to mark the 1948 Palestinian exodus from the territory that became Israel.

A spike in tensions and cross-border incidents has been observed in Israel and the Palestinian Territories in the wake of US President Donald Trump's December 2017 announcement that the US would officially recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital, a departure from the previous US and international position of neutrality on the status of the city claimed by both Israelis and Palestinians. In February, American officials announced that the embassy would open a temporary location in Jerusalem by mid-May 2018, ahead of the previously anticipated schedule.

Advice

Individuals present in Israel and the Palestinian Territories are advised to avoid all protests or other public gatherings due to the high risk of violence and to monitor developments to the situation. Due to the underlying terrorist threat, travelers in Israel, the West Bank, and the Gaza Strip are advised to report any suspicious objects or behavior to the authorities. Some Western governments advise their citizens against all travel to the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, and areas near the Israeli-Lebanese, Israeli-Syrian, and Israeli-Egyptian borders.