By Awad Al Rajoub
RAMALLAH, Palestine (AA) – Four Palestinians were injured on Saturday by Israeli army gunfire, two of them near Ramallah's Ofer Prison in the West Bank, official media reported.
The shooting occurred as hundreds of Palestinians were waiting in front of the prison for the expected release of Palestinian inmates under a hostage swap deal between Israel and Hamas.
Two young men were shot with live ammunition on Saturday evening during confrontations with Israeli forces near the Ofer Prison, west of Ramallah, in the central part of the West Bank, Palestinian news agency Wafa said.
Eyewitnesses told Anadolu that the Israeli army was heavily deployed near the gate, through which a number of Palestinian inmates are expected to be released as part of a deal with Hamas.
The Israeli army have fired live ammunition and tear gas to disperse the families of the inmates, the eyewitnesses added.
The Palestine Red Crescent Society confirmed in a statement that it transported "a 16-year-old boy injured by live ammunition near the Ofer military prison."
The aid organization said that it provided first aid to "two gunshot injuries, one of them in southern West Bank and the other with injuries in the leg during confrontations in Biet Ummar, north of Hebron."
The humanitarian group also said it dealt with "an 11-year-old child injured by live ammunition shrapnel during clashes in the town of Burqa near Nablus, northern West Bank.
Tensions have been running high across the West Bank since the fighting broke out between Palestinian groups and Israel in Gaza on Oct. 7.
The four-day humanitarian pause between the Israeli army and Hamas came into effect on Friday morning in all areas of the Gaza Strip, temporarily stopping attacks for prisoner exchange and aid.
The pause commenced at 7 a.m. local time (0500GMT).
*Writing by Ziad Aslan