JENIN, West Bank, July 20 (AFP) - Fifteen Palestinians were wounded near the northern West Bank town of Jenin Tuesday when Israeli soldiers opened fire during an operation to destroy 25 shops built without authorisation.
Several dozen armoured vehicles and bulldozers came under attack from hundreds of stone-throwing youths during an incursion into the town of Barta, prompting the soldiers to open fire, Palestinian security sources and witnesses said.
According to an army spokesman, the operation was launched to destroy "illegally built structures", adding that the soldiers had fired rubber bullets and tear gas to disperse the crowd.
Meanwhile, 11 Palestinians who were wanted by the Israeli security services were arrested overnight in the West Bank, military sources said.