Israeli forces attack protesters in Sheikh Jarrah

Israeli police officers have targeted Palestinian protesters in the occupied East Jerusalem neighbourhood of Sheikh Jarrah amid a grassroots-organised national strike by Palestinians.

Large numbers of heavily armed police were deployed to occupied East Jerusalem to suppress Palestinian anger over the ongoing bombing of Gaza, Israeli police attacks on the al-Aqsa Mosque compound and the appropriation of Palestinian property in Sheikh Jarrah by Israeli settlers.

Israeli forces released skunk water from trucks to disperse the protesters, with support from armed police mounted on horseback. 

The neighbourhood has been largely closed off by Israeli forces using concrete blocks and barricades. Local residents say that lawyers, journalists and activists have not been allowed to enter the area and those attempting to are prevented from doing so at checkpoints.

At Damascus Gate, journalists and locals were harassed by Israeli police. 

The Palestinian Red Crescent said that 16 people had been injured as a result of Israeli police action near the Damascus Gate, with three requiring hospitalisation.

The injuries were largely a result of rubber-coated steel bullets, stun grenades and tear gas used by Israeli forces.