Israeli army gunfire injures 3 Palestinians in Gaza

Three Palestinians were injured Monday by Israeli army gunfire in the southern part of the Gaza Strip.

In a statement, the Palestinian Health Ministry said Israeli soldiers shot the young Palestinian men east of Rafah city, where they had gathered for a Great March of Return rally. They suffered moderate wounds and were taken to a nearby hospital.

More than 230 Palestinian demonstrators have been martyred by Israeli army gunfire since the Gaza rallies began on March 30 last year.

Demonstrators are demanding the right of Palestinian refugees to return to their homes and villages in historical Palestine, from which they were driven in 1948 to make way for the new state of Israel.

They also demand an end to Israel's years-long blockade of the Gaza Strip, which has gutted the coastal enclave's economy and deprived its roughly two million inhabitants of many basic commodities.