Women's demonstration dispersed at Israeli checkpoint

RAMALLAH, West Bank, March 8 (UPI) -- Israeli soldiers used teargas to break up a women's protest Saturday at a checkpoint between Ramallah and Jerusalem, the Ma'an news agency reports.

The General Union of Palestinian Women held the demonstration to mark International Women's Day, the Palestinian news agency said. Men accompanying the group threw stones at the soldiers who responded with tear gas canisters.

The Qalandia checkpoint was closed after the crowd approached it.

One demonstrator told Ma'an the protest was to show that the women "want to live free from occupation in an independent Palestinian state."