May 7, 2017: Fatima Afeef Abdul-Rahman Hajiji, 16, was killed by Israeli soldiers and police officers near the entrance of Damascus Gate in Jerusalem after the police claimed she attempted to stab a security officer.
Eyewitnesses said Fatima was standing at least ten meters away from the nearest soldier or officer, and that one of the soldiers started shouting “knife, knife,” before five soldiers fired a barrage of bullets at the her.
Fatima was first shot with several live rounds in the chest, and the soldiers continued to fire at her after she fell onto the ground. Many live rounds also struck a Palestinian Taxi, parked nearby, causing damage and puncturing one of its tires.
Photos of the deceased show that she was shot and killed at quite a distance from the guard post, so even if she had been holding a knife (which is disputed), no security officers were in danger at the time when she was killed.
Following the fatal shooting of the child, the soldiers used pepper-spray against dozens of Palestinians who gathered in the area, especially close to Fatima.
The soldiers also assaulted many Palestinians, including children, in Sultan Suleiman Street, causing a child, identified as Mahmoud Abu Sbeih, 9, to fall from a high altitude after mounted officer chased him and many other Palestinians.
Hundreds of soldiers and mounted police officers were deployed in the area, closed many roads and alleys, and forced the Palestinians away.
Fatima was from Qarawat Bani Zeid village near Ramallah, in the central part of the West Bank. Source: IMEMC