The Gaza Health Ministry says one Palestinian was killed and 49 were injured Friday when members of the Israeli army fired on protesters near the border fence with Israel and the Gazan city of Khan Younis.
In a statement Friday, the Israeli Defense Forces said about 5,000 Palestinians took part in the protests, most of which it said were peaceful. IDF said it only targets protesters who threaten the border.
Protests at the border have been taking place for weeks over the decade-long blockade of the Palestinian territory, where many families live in poverty. The IDF said some of the protesters have been burning tires, hurling rocks or homemade explosives, or even flying kites with burning rags attached over the border with Israel.
Israeli forces have responded with tear gas and gunshots.
The protests come before Monday's opening of the new U.S. embassy in Jerusalem, and Tuesday's 70th anniversary of the founding of Israel.
The Palestinians have nicknamed Israel's founding "an-Nakba," or "catastrophe," because it led to hundreds of thousands of Palestinians being forced from their homes in what had been the state of Palestine.
