Thousands of Palestinians rallied on Wednesday to mark Nakba Day, what Palestinians call “the catastrophe” that befell them in the war that led to the establishment of Israel in 1948.

Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians were forcibly displaced from their homes.

For more than a year, Palestinians in Gaza have been holding weekly protests along the fence, calling for the right of return for Palestinian refugees and their descendants to the territory, as well as for an end to a 12-year blockade imposed by Israel.

At least 47 Palestinians were wounded by Israeli soldiers during Wednesday’s protests, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.

Witnesses said the soldiers fired live ammunition, tear gas canisters and rubber-coated steel bullets to disperse protesters near the Israeli separation fence in eastern Gaza.