Israeli forces shot and wounded five Palestinians on Tuesday during a raid at a university in the occupied West Bank, the Palestinian Red Crescent said, as the Israeli military sought to justify the use of live fire by describing the incident as a "violent confrontation."
Military vehicles entered the campus of Birzeit University late in the morning, according to several witnesses who spoke to AFP and whose accounts were confirmed by the institution's president, Talal Shahwan.
Videos posted on social media showed the intervention, while AFP journalists saw several military vehicles leave the campus, escorted by Israeli soldiers on foot.
The Israeli military claimed it intervened to disperse an "anticipated gathering in support of terror" that was about to take place at the university.
The military said that a "violent confrontation broke out... during which rocks were hurled from rooftops in the area toward the forces."
