RAMALLAH, Jan. 6 (Xinhua) -- Eleven Palestinian students were injured on Tuesday when Israeli forces raided Birzeit University, north of Ramallah in the central West Bank, according to Palestinian sources.
The Palestine Red Crescent Society said in a brief statement that its medical teams treated 11 students, including three wounded by live ammunition, three by shrapnel, and five suffering from tear gas inhalation.
University sources told Xinhua that seven Israeli military vehicles stormed the campus and sealed off all entrances.
The sources added that Israeli soldiers detained several students, journalists, and the university's vice president for academic affairs, Assem Khalil, before later withdrawing from the campus and releasing those held.
According to the sources, Israeli forces fired live ammunition and tear gas canisters extensively across the campus, and vandalized equipment and belongings prepared by students for an event showing solidarity with Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.
University President Talal Shahwan condemned the raid, saying that although the university has been repeatedly targeted in the past, Tuesday's raid was unprecedented.
Speaking at a press conference on campus, Shahwan said the raid aimed to prevent the university from carrying out its educational, social, and humanitarian roles, describing it as part of a systematic policy against Palestinian educational institutions.
There was no immediate comment from the Israeli army on these incidents.
The Israeli army has carried out operations in the West Bank almost on a daily basis. It usually called these operations "anti-terrorism" measures aimed at Palestinian militants or individuals perceived as a threat to Israel. ■
