Heavy clashes broke out near Ramallah in the West Bank on Sunday when youths clashed with Israeli troops as Palestinians mourned the anniversary of Israel's creation in 1948.

Palestinian youngsters hurled stones, and troops responded with tear gas and rubber bullets near the Qalandiya crossing between Ramallah and annexed east Jerusalem, medical sources and an AFP correspondent said.

At least five Palestinians were injured, one of whom was hit in the head by rubber bullets, medical sources told AFP.

An Israeli army spokeswoman said there were "around 200 people who were engaged in rioting" with border police using riot dispersal means to try and break up the disturbance.

Clashes were also reported in the east Jerusalem district of Issawiya, with youths throwing stones and hurling Molotov cocktails, police said.

"Stones were thrown at police. Three people were arrested and one police officer was slightly injured," Rosenfeld said.

And in al-Walaja, a village which straddles the Bethlehem-Jerusalem border, around 150 people staged a demonstration, waving black flags and Palestinian flags, shouting: "Go away, go away! We don't want to see the Zionists," an AFP correspondent said.

In northern Gaza, several dozen Palestinian youngsters marched from Beit Hanun towards the Israeli border and began throwing stones at an Israeli tank, which opened fire towards them, an AFP correspondent said.

Six of them, all minors, were moderately injured when the tank fired a shell in their direction, while another four were injured by gunfire, an emergency services spokesman told AFP.