September 2, 2017: Raed al-Salhi, 21, died of serious wounds sustained three weeks earlier in an Israeli military raid of Deheishe refugee camp in Bethlehem.
Al-Salhi had been shot multiple times in the chest and abdomen on August 9th, puncturing his liver and landing him in critical condition at the Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem, where he died of his injuries on September 2nd, three weeks after being shot.
While he was being treated at the hospital, he was denied any visits by his family, and was heavily guarded by Israeli soldiers who considered him a prisoner. He remained unconscious the entire time, until his death.
According to his brother Khaled, their mother had tried several times to visit him but was prevented. She suffers from several health issues, and was unable to sleep during the past three weeks after her child was shot.
In addition to keeping the unconscious youth under heavy guard, the Israeli military also arrested his brother and kept him for interrogation. Neither Raed nor his brother were ever charged with any crime.
The Israeli military stated that they entered the camp on August 9th to detain al-Salhi and another young men, but when the two young men ran away, the soldiers pursued them, and fired live ammunition at the two unarmed youth.
The Head of the Palestinian Prisoners Committee, Issa Qaraqe’, told reporters from the Ma’an News Agency that the Committee holds Israel responsible for the 21-year old’s death, and condemned the use of live ammunition by Israel in its invasion of the refugee camp.
Qaraqe added that Salhi was left bleeding for more than 90 minutes, after the soldiers prevented local medics from approaching him.
Dr. Ra’fat Hamdouna, the head of the Prisoners’ Center for Studies, stated that the death of the wounded Palestinian should raise an international outcry, and bring attention to the issue of extrajudicial executions and medical neglect of dozens of Palestinian detainees. Dr. Hamdouna added that the soldiers shot Raed from very close range, with the intent to kill him.
Raed al-Salhi was a member of the leftist political party, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP). The party said that al-Salhi was involved in a number of volunteer activities in the camp to provide health and social activities for the residents. Source: IMEMC