GAZA CITY, Palestine

Palestinians on Friday converged near a fence between the Gaza Strip and Israel to demonstrate against Tel Aviv's decades-long occupation of Palestinian territories.

Gaza’s National Authority for Return and Breaking the Siege (NARBS), which organizes weekly rallies, called on Palestinians to attend the demonstration.

"Jerusalem was and still is the capital of our Palestinian people," NARBS said, rejecting Israeli attempts to "Judaize the city".

Since the Gaza rallies began in March last year, nearly 270 protesters have been martyred -- and thousands more wounded -- by Israeli troops deployed near the buffer zone.

Demonstrators demand an end to Israel’s 12-year blockade of the Gaza Strip, which has shattered the coastal enclave’s economy and deprived its two million inhabitants of many basic amenities.