A Palestinian protest march along the Gaza Strip’s border with Israel ended without incident.
Several thousand women and children formed a human chain opposite Gazan border crossings with Israel on Monday, calling for an end to the economic blockade on the Hamas-ruled territory.
Fearing that the Palestinians would try to storm across the frontier in a repeat of last month’s destruction of the wall on Gaza’s southern border with Egypt, Israel had reinforced its military garrison with riot police. But the protesters dispersed peacefully within two hours.
Asked about the low turnout given that organizers had predicted that as many as 50,000 people would participate, Hamas described the march as a “rehearsal” for bigger protests possible in the future.
