Israeli forces attack Palestinians protesting annexation in West Bank

The occupying forces began shooting towards protestors marching against Israel's illegal move to annex large swaths of the West Bank, according to coordinator of the Local Popular Resistance Committee Murad Ishtiwi.

A 23-year-old protestor was shot in the foot with a rubber-coated steel bullet in the foot and dozens suffocated from tear gas, who were treated at the scene.

Israel has occupied the West Bank illegally since 1967, and commits various abuses against Palestinian civilians, human rights groups say.

More than 600,000 Israeli Jews live in settlements in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, in constructions considered illegal under international law.

The Oslo agreement of 1995 divided the occupied West Bank into three: Area A, Area B and Area C.

Area A is under the administrative and security control of the Palestinian Authority (PA). Area B's administration is controlled by the Palestinian Authority, with Israel controlling security. Area C is under full administrative and security control of Israel.

Israel's plans to annex the West Bank have been denounced as an illegal violation of international law by world leaders as well as UN human rights chief, Michelle Bachelet.

Israel was originally supposed to begin annexing the occupied West Bank on 1 July, but the plan had been delayed - allegedly because the map to annex the territories was not ready on time.

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