Israeli protesters breach Gaza checkpoint, with some advancing 500m
Israeli demonstrators have forced their way through a military checkpoint during a protest at the Erez border crossing to the Gaza Strip and entered the sealed-off Palestinian coastal area, according to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).
Around 100 protesters had previously gathered at the crossing north of the Gaza Strip, Israel's military confirmed upon request, after several Israeli outlets had reported of the incident.
"This afternoon (Thursday), approximately 100 protesters arrived adjacent to the Erez Crossing. Approximately 20 of the protestors violated IDF instructions, violently broke through a military checkpoint manned by IDF soldiers, and crossed the border area from Israeli territory into the Gaza Strip to a point adjacent to the border."
According to the reports, the demonstrators were radical Israeli settlers, some of whom managed to advance as far as some 500 metres into Gaza before the IDF was able to stop them.
According to the army, soldiers monitored the group during the incident before they were eventually taken back to Israel and handed over to police.
Videos circulating on social media showed the demonstrators trying set up a temporary settlement on the other side of the border crossing - while still on Israeli territory - equipped with planks.
There were heated exchanges between the activists and soldiers who prevented them from crossing.
In 2005, Israel withdrew from the Gaza Strip and evacuated more than 20 Israeli settlements. Since the beginning of the Gaza war, radical settler activists have once again stepped up their demands for Israeli resettlement in the coastal area.
