Israel-Palestine peace talks on hold in light of deadly clashes in West Bank

Palestinian officials canceled peace talks with Israel after a clash between both forces left three Palestinians dead on Monday.

According to The Jerusalem Post, a large crowd of Palestinians launched an attack against the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) as a group of elite border patrol officers came to the Kalandiya refugee camp to arrest a suspected Tanzim terrorist. The rioters shot at army vehicles, and threw washing machines and concrete blocks down from rooftops. The crowd, which had initially started at about 300 people, had grown to 500, and the Palestinians began throwing more objects at the IDF soldiers: bathtubs, refrigerators, and carpets set on fire in addition to the washing machines and blocks.

Palestinian officials canceled a planned round of peace talks shortly after the events, although talks are expected to resume eventually.

Some Palestinian sources provide a different viewpoint, however. Hatim Khatib, whose brother Youssef was arrested in midst of the clash, told The Associated Press that Israeli soldiers started shooting first, and the Palestinian protestors only attacked in retaliation.

Israeli army spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Peter Lerner told BBC that the large, violent crowd of Palestinians outnumbered the Israeli security forces “leave no other alternative but to resort to live fire in self-defence," while Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah condemned the deaths of the three Palestinians, saying "such a crime proves the need for an urgent and effective international protection for our people".

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