West News Wire: According to Palestinian reports, Israeli troops shot and killed a 17-year-old Palestinian in the occupied West Bank. This latest killing comes amid ongoing tensions in the area.
The teenager, Muhammad Fouad Atta al-Bayed, was shot in the head by Israeli forces on Friday during rioting in the nearby hamlet of Umm Safa, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.
The teenager from the Jalazone refugee camp, north of Ramallah, was rushed to the Istishari Arab Hospital before he passed away from his injuries, according to the Palestinian news agency Wafa.
It further stated that during clashes with locals, Israeli forces had used live bullets, tear gas, and stun grenades.
The Israeli army said that a member of the paramilitary border police unit opened fire after masked suspects threw stones and rocks at Israeli forces, according to The Associated Press.
It confirmed that a person was hit by gunfire but gave no further details. It said that soldiers opened fire in response to stone-throwing and explosives, hitting one suspect who allegedly had thrown a bomb.
Palestinian officials gave no immediate updates.
Al-Bayed was killed as a result of a year-long escalation in violence that has been characterised by frequent Israeli operations on the occupied West Bank and shows no indications of ending.
Since the beginning of 2023, Israeli fire has claimed the lives of over 150 Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.
The far-right Israeli administration, which took office at the beginning of the year and is led by prominent members of the settler movement, which aspires to expand illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank at the expense of Palestinians, has only made raids deadlier.
Palestinian health sources reported that 24-year-old Abdel-Jawad Hamdan Saleh was also fatally shot in the chest by Israeli forces earlier this month in Umm Safa. Palestinian health sources reported that 24-year-old Abdel-Jawad Hamdan Saleh was also fatally shot in the chest by Israeli forces earlier this month in Umm Safa.
After four Israeli settlers were fatally shot at a gas station between the Palestinian cities of Ramallah and Nablus last month, several dozen Israelis went on a rampage across the West Bank village, torching homes and vehicles over the course of several days.
The incident occurred the day after a significant Israeli military raid resulted in the deaths of six Palestinians in the Jenin refugee camp.
The torching of homes and property in Umm Safa drew rare condemnation from the Israeli army’s international media spokesman, who condemned the settler rioting as “acts of terror”, The Times of Israel reported.
Opposition leader Yair Lapid said the violence “crosses all lines”.
“Torching homes and cars of innocents is inhumane and definitely not Jewish. Prime Minister [Benjamin] Netanyahu needs to condemn this disgrace and deal with it severely. This is a moral disgrace and security threat,” Lapid tweeted.
