West Bank

Ibrahim Mustafa Abu Yacoub

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July 9th, 2020: Ibrahim Mustafa Abu Yacoub, 33, was shot by Israeli soldiers with a live round in his neck, causing life-threatening wounds.

The Palestinian Health Ministry confirmed the death of a Palestinian man who was shot by Israeli soldiers near the main intersection of Kifl Hares town, north of Salfit in central West Bank, and added that the soldiers also shot and injured a Palestinian teen.

The Ministry added that Palestinian medics rushed the seriously wounded Palestinian to Salfit Governmental Hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries.

The soldiers also shot and injured a Palestinian teen with a live round in his thigh.

There were no protests when the soldiers opened fire at the Palestinians, who were walking near the main entrance of the town, which was blockaded by the army four days ago. For the last four days, the soldiers have been preventing the Palestinians from entering or leaving it.

Eyewitnesses said Abu Ya’coub was just walking with a few of his friends when the soldiers targeted them with live fire without any cause or justification.

Essam Abu Yacoub, the head of Kifl Hares Town Council, said the slain Palestinian, and the wounded teen, Mohammad Abdul-Salam Abu Ya’coub, 17, were walking in the area when the soldiers directly targeted them with live fire. The soldiers were on the military tower which was installed at the entrance of the town.

He added that a vehicle of colonialist Israeli settlers was in the area, and that the colonists also opened fire at the Palestinians.

Salfit Governor, Abdullah Kamil, said the Israeli army has escalated its violations against the civilians, and called on all factions, and the Palestinian people, to unite in facing the Israeli aggression against them, their homes, lands and their holy sites amidst the planned illegal annexation of large areas of the occupied West Bank.

“This despicable and ugly crime is just one of a series of Israeli violations against our people in every part of occupied Palestine,” Kamil added, “This is yet another cold-blooded murder; Ibrahim and his friends were just walking in their town; there was no reason for the soldiers to open fire at them in the first place, let alone to deliver the fatal shots.”

The slain Palestinian is the brother of Agricultural Engineer and the Director of the Ministry of Environmental Affairs, Marwan Abu Ya’coub.

Ibrahim was from Kifl Hares town, north of Salfit in the central West Bank. Source: IMEMC

Ahmad Mustafa Erekat

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June 23, 2020: Ahmad Mustafa Erekat, 26, was shot and killed by Israeli soldiers at the “Container” military roadblock, northeast of Bethlehem, while he was preparing for his sister’s wedding that was scheduled to take place later that day.

The soldiers claimed that Ahmad ‘tried to ram them with his car’ – a claim that his family says is beyond ridiculous.

The head of Abu Dis Town Council, Ahmad Abu Hilal, said the soldiers shot Ahmad with multiple rounds, and left him to bleed to death, before taking his corpse away.

Abu Hilal added that Ahmad was driving to Bethlehem city to fetch his sisters and his mother from a hairdressing shop in Bethlehem, as the family was preparing for the wedding of one of his sisters, which was supposed to take place on the same day, Tuesday, June 23 2019.

|Erekat: “Netanyahu Is Responsible For Ahmad Erekat’s Execution”|

Eyewitnesses said the soldiers at the permanent military roadblock closed the area, and prevented Red Crescent medics from approaching the young man, in addition to firing many gas bombs at Palestinian cars and residents to force them away.

The Israeli army alleged that the young man “accelerated towards the roadblock, and attempted to ram a female soldier with his car,” and added that the soldier reportedly suffered mild wounds before she was moved to a hospital in Jerusalem.

The spokesperson of the Israel police, Micky Rosenfeld, claimed that “after trying to ram the soldiers, the young man got out of his vehicle, and approached them before they shot him.”

The family denied the military allegations and said the soldiers rushed to shoot Ahmad without any justification, and added that they believe their slain son must have lost control over his car.

“As we have seen in previous similar incidents, the soldiers were quick to open deadly fire,” his family said, “Our son would never have tried to deliberately ram soldiers, or anybody else, especially on the day of his sister’s wedding!”

They added that they intend to hire a lawyer to demand Israel to release his corpse for burial.

Palestinian journalist Christine Rimawi said that the slain Palestinian was a Facebook friend and that he himself was preparing to get married soon.

“Today’s victim, Ahmad Mustafa Erekat, 27, was executed by the soldiers at the Container roadblock, and the army was ready with its familiar allegation of attempted ramming attack, Christine stated, “But the truth is that he was just going to Bethlehem to fetch his mother and sisters from a hairdressing salon when the soldiers shot him and left him to bleed to death,” she added.

“He was getting ready for the celebration, for his sister’s wedding! He was shot and killed instead! Can you imagine what this wedding has turned into?! Not only that today is his sister’s wedding. His own wedding was supposed to take place soon!”

The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates issued a statement strongly denouncing the escalating Israeli violations and the “cold-blooded murder of Ahmad at the racist deathtrap roadblocks.”

“This crime is part of Israel’s ongoing policies; this illegal authority of the Israeli occupation continues to commit crimes against our people, including field executions, and extrajudicial assassinations,” the Ministry stated, “All of these policies and crimes, committed by the police, the army, and the paramilitary colonialist settlers, are targeting the Palestinian civilians, their homes and lands, and are aimed at trying to force us out of our ancestral lands.”

The Ministry also stated that it will file a complaint with the United Nations, and all its related institutions, as part of its constant efforts to document the Israeli crimes against the Palestinian people, including the murder of Ahmad Erekat.

It called on the International Community, the United Nations, and the Security Council, to act on providing immediate protection to the Palestinian people, living under the illegal Israeli military occupation, and to implement the basics of International Law.

“Our people urgently need protection, the International Community; the United Nations must act and end these escalating Israeli crimes,” it added, “The criminal Israeli occupation of Palestine continues to target innocent civilians. Silence is complicity!”

Video By Palestine TV

Ahmad was from Abu Dis, in the central West Bank. Source: IMEMC

Fadi Adnan Samara

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Fadi SamaraMay 29, 2020: Fadi Adnan Sarhan Samara, 37, a father of five, was killed by Israeli soldiers after he lost control of his vehicle when he was fired upon by Israeli colonial settlers near Nabi Saleh village, northwest of the central West Bank city of Ramallah.

The Israeli army claimed that the soldiers fired live rounds at the Palestinian car after the driver reportedly tried to ram them, and that the soldiers “neutralized the threat,” a term Israel and various Israeli media outlets frequently use when the soldiers fatally shoot a Palestinian.

His family denied the military allegations and said the man lost control of his car after Israeli colonialist settlers opened fire at it.

The slain man was identified as Fadi Adnan Sarhan Samara, 37, a father of five children, including an infant (two months of age) from Abu Qash village, north of Ramallah.

He worked in Israel and had returned back home to Nabi Saleh to celebrate the Muslim feast of al-Fitr with his family.

His brothers stated that he left his home in the evening heading to az-Zawiya village, west of Salfit in central West Bank, to fetch his wife and children and bring them back home, as they were visiting her family there.

The Israeli army claimed that Fadi tried to ram soldiers with his car near a natural spring in the Ramallah governorate. He was shot in the leg and was left to bleed for about an hour,  without any first aid.

But Palestinian media outlets and residents in the area said that Fadi lost control of his car when illegal Israeli colonialist settlers, who repeatedly invade the area, opened fire at his car, before the soldiers fired a barrage of live rounds at it, claiming that he was attempting to ram them.

Haneen Zaid@HaneenZaid6

| Israeli forces kill Fadi Samara, father of 5 children, near Nabi Saleh. Samara was killed in his car and left bleeding for over an hour.

Embedded video

One of his brothers, and one of his cousins, were both detained by the army, and after being released, they stated that an army officer told them, after confirming his identity, that they could not take his corpse for burial.

They stated that the military was taunting them by stating that the family can have his corpse back “maybe in an hour or two, a month or two, a year or two….”

His family, and the residents of his village, strongly denounced his murder, and stated that the Israeli soldiers are always “trigger happy” when it comes to shooting Palestinians, and that the army tries to justify these crimes by making false allegations.

They called for a serious investigation into the fatal shooting and called on international organizations to act and hold Israel accountable at the International Criminal Court (ICC) for its escalating crimes and ongoing violations against the Palestinian people, their homes and property.

Protests erupted after the fatal shooting of the Palestinian man, and the soldiers fired live rounds and rubber-coated steel rounds.

A Palestinian man with Downs Syndrome was struck with a live round in his leg.

Fadi was from Abu Qash village, north of Ramallah. Source: IMEMC

Bahaeddin Mohammad al-‘Awawda

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May 14, 2020: Bahaeddin Mohammad Abdullah al-‘Awawda, 18, was shot and killed by Israeli soldiers near Negohot illegal colony, southwest of Hebron, in the southern part of the occupied West Bank, reportedly after he rammed them with his car, wounding one.

The Palestinian Health Ministry said it was informed by the Civil District Coordination Office that the young man had been identified as Bahaeddin Mohammad Abdullah al-‘Awawda, 18, from Deir Samit town, west of Hebron.

The Palestinian was moved by an Israeli ambulance to Soroka hospital in Beersheba (Be’er as-Sabe’), but was shortly pronounced dead due to his severe wounds.

The Israeli army stated that the young man “deliberately rammed soldiers with his car, moderately wounding one,” before they shot him.

It added that the soldiers were standing near a military post when the Palestinian reportedly accelerated towards them, moderately wounding one soldier, 21, who suffered injuries in his upper body.

The incident took place near Beit Awwa town, west of Hebron, and the soldiers closed the main entrance of the town, preventing the Palestinians from entering or leaving it.

The al-‘Awawda family demanded the army to reveal more information about his death, and called for a fair investigation committee to investigate these details.

His uncle, Atef al-Awawda, said that the family demands to know these details, regardless of whether this was a “ramming attack” as the army claims, or just a traffic accident, and most importantly “was there a real need for fatal shots?”

Atef added that the soldiers summoned the slain man’s father for interrogation immediately after the incident and that the father was still in the military base.

Bahaeddin was from Hebron, in the southern West Bank. Source: IMEMC

Zeid Fadel Qaisiyya

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May 13th, 2020: Zeid Fadel Qaisiyya, 15, was killed with a bullet to the head by Israeli soldiers during an invasion of Zeid’s neighborhood in the al-Fawwar refugee camp, southwest of the southern West Bank city of Hebron.

Media sources said dozens of soldiers invaded the refugee camp, and attacked local youngsters, who protested the invasion into their alley and neighborhoods.

They added that the soldiers fired many live rounds at the unarmed protesters, and at random, in addition to rubber-coated steel bullets and gas bombs. In addition to Zeid, four others were injured.

His mother stated that her son was not taking part of any protest, and added that he, his brother, and some of his cousins, went to the rooftop of the house after hearing what sounded like concussion grenades, but that is when he was shot.

His brother, after seeing him collapse on the ground, thought he was joking, but when he checked on Zeid, he found the blood on his face, as the bullet struck him in the face and exited from the back of his head.

The family lived in a five-story building, and Zeid was on the rooftop along with his cousins to watch the unfolding invasion.

His brother Jihad, who was standing next to him when Zeid was shot, said that they just went to the rooftop to see what was happening when a soldier targeted them.

Jihad added that he and his slain brother were not part of any protests that took place when the soldiers invaded the refugee camp. “We were just on the rooftop, watching when the soldiers fired the shot, ” he said.

Medical sources in Hebron said the soldiers killed a child, identified as Zeid Fadel Qaisiyya, 15, after shooting him with a live round in the head.

They added that the soldiers also shot four other Palestinians with live fire; two of them were shot in the chest and abdomen, and two in their lower extremities.

Zeid was from the al-Fawwar refugee camp, southwest of the southern West Bank city of Hebron. Source: IMEMC

Amit Ben Ygal

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May 12, 2020: Amit Ben Ygal, 21, was killed during a pre-dawn invasion of the northern West Bank by Palestinians who dropped a large stone from a rooftop on his head while he was in the street.

According to the Israeli daily Ha’aretz, Ygal was among a battalion of soldiers with the Golani Brigade who invaded the village of Ya’bad, southwest of the city of Jenin in the northern West Bank, around 4:00 in the morning on Tuesday.

Many villagers were awake at the time, to eat their pre-dawn meal and prepare for the day of fasting during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. So the soldiers, who often engage in pre-dawn raids but usually do so while residents are sleeping, instead were met by angry youth who demanded that they leave their town.

The Israeli military reported that the Golani Brigade was invading the village in order to abduct two Palestinians that they suspected of ‘terrorism’, and another two who were suspected of having thrown stones at soldiers during previous invasions.

Following the initial invasion, dozens of soldiers and armored vehicles stormed the town, and initiated very violent and extensive searches of homes and buildings, and abducted at least eighteen Palestinians, including a father and his three children.The person who dropped the stone on the soldier has not been identified, but Israeli troops have issued a complete lockdown order on the village and are searching house-by-house, interrogating the residents and preventing them from leaving their homes.

Media sources in Jenin said the soldiers abducted Mohammad Atiyya Abu Bakr along with his brothers Thabet, Bassel and Ra’fat, in addition to Ribhi Mohammad Abu Bakr, along with his wife, his daughter Eman, 15, and his sons Mohammad and Khaled.

The soldiers also abducted Anas Kamer Abu Shamla and his brother Yazan, in addition to assaulting and wounding their brother, Mohammad.

The soldiers also shot two young men with rubber-coated steel bullets and caused dozens to suffer the severe effects of teargas inhalation.

The soldiers also stormed and ransacked many homes, including the properties of Bassem Lufti Abu Bakr, Sa’ed Omar Abu Bakr, Atiyya Younis Asfour, in addition to his brothers Nathmi and Ribhi, and interrogated them for several hours.

Furthermore, the soldiers also occupied the rooftops of many homes, especially in the as-Salma neighborhood, while more soldiers were deployed in the town’s streets and around it, completely isolating it.

Amit was from Ramat Gan, in central Israel. Source: IMEMC

Islam Dwaikat

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April 1, 2020: Islam Dwaikat, 22, died of wounds sustained when he was shot by Israeli forces during a protest last month.

Palestinian medical sources in the West Bank city of Nablus pronounced Islam dead on Wednesday April 1st, and said he was wounded by Israeli troops that opened fire at Palestinian protesters during an Israeli invasion of Beita town, south of Nablus city, in the northern West Bank.

The Mayor of Beita town, Fo’ad Ma’ali, told local media outlets that on March 11, the youth was struck with a rubber-coated steel bullet in the head and has remained in a deep coma at a local hospital.

Massive protests took place last month, between Israeli troops and local residents in the al-‘Arma Mountain when locals intercepted colonial Israeli settlers, en-route to the Palestinian-populated area.

Israeli forces reacted by firing tear-gas canisters, rubber-coated steel bullets and live ammunition at Palestinians protecting their land.

The Israeli crackdown on the protests claimed the life of a teen boy, Mohammad Hamayel, 15 and caused the injury of 112 other protesters, mainly by rubber-coated steel bullets and tear-gas inhalation injuries.

Israeli colonists, illegally squatting on Palestinian lands in the occupied West Bank, including occupied Jerusalem, have been constantly storming the mountain and attempting to control an archaeological historical site above its summit.

Illegal Israeli settlements, that surround and isolate Palestinian villages, towns, and cities stand as flashpoints for violent confrontations between the indigenous Palestinian population and illegal settlers not to mention the occupation army.

Islam was from the Nablus district, in the northern West Bank. Source: IMEMC

Sofian Nawwaf al-Khawaja

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March 22, 2020: Sofian Nawwaf al-Khawaja, 29, was shot and killed by Israeli soldiers near the entrance of Ni’lin village, west of the central West Bank city of Ramallah.

Medical sources said the soldiers shot Sofian during an invasion of the area, causing a very serious injury that resulted in his death shortly afterward.

They added that the soldiers stopped and held a Palestinian ambulance that was rushing to render aid to the Palestinian.

Instead of allowing the Palestinian medics to render the urgently needed aid to the critically wounded young man, the soldiers called for an Israeli ambulance while al-Khawaja continued to bleed.

The Israeli army claimed that the soldiers opened fire at several Palestinians who reportedly hurled stones at their jeeps.

However, Palestinian sources said the slain Palestinian was not among the protesters but happened to be passing through the area along with his cousin.

Israeli daily Haaretz quoted a military spokesperson stating that the soldiers opened fire at two Palestinians who were “hurling rocks at Israeli vehicles at the Ni’lin junction,” and added that the soldiers “killed one of them, while the other Palestinian managed to escape.”

Haaretz added that the army initiated a search campaign in the area.

Sofian was from Nil’in, in the central West Bank. Source: IMEMC

Fakhr Mahmoud Qurt

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Fakhr QurtFebruary 17, 2020: Fakhr Mahmoud Abu Zayed Qurt, 53, was found dead in a deserted valley in the West Bank. Israeli soldiers stationed in the occupied West Bank recovered his body, which they found tangled among bushes in a rural area, and stated that Fakhr apparently died of his wounds after a shooting attack targeting Israeli soldiers two weeks prior.

The corpse was found near Ras Karkar village, west of Ramallah, in central West Bank.

The slain Palestinian has been identified as Fakhr Mahmoud Abu Zayed Qurt, 53, from Betunia town, south of Ramallah.

According to the Israeli military spokesperson, the body was found “at the end of operational and intelligence efforts and after sweeping operations of the Israeli security services.”

The military claimed the Palestinian was injured after the soldiers responded to him firing at them, and fled the scene.

The military reported to Israeli news outlets that next to the body, which was eventually located only one kilometer from where the incident took place, the soldiers located an M16 rifle and a pistol, indicating that the person killed may have been responsible for the shooting.

The attack which the deceased Palestinian is suspected of having taken part was a shooting incident targeting Israeli soldiers two weeks ago, in which one Israeli soldier was lightly wounded near the “Dolip” settlement on Feb. 6th.

Local sources in Betunia said that, five days ago, the soldiers invaded and ransacked his home, before abducting two of his sons, Haitham and Mohammad, in addition to confiscating his car.

A statement issued by the Israeli military read, in part, “Following an operational and intelligence effort by all the security forces, and after extensive searches, [Israeli military] fighters soon located a body of the Palestinian who carried out a shooting attack in Binyamin”.

The February 6th exchange of fire was one of three attacks that same day, which was the day that the Trump-Kushner plan for Israeli annexation of historic Palestine was publicly announced. Thousands of Palestinians took to the streets in protest of the plan when it was announced, because they see it as a colonial land grab by Israel. No Palestinian leaders were consulted in the creation of the Trump-Kushner plan.

Fakhr was from Betunia town, south of Ramallah. Source: IMEMC

Bader Nidal Nafla Harsha

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February 7, 2020: Bader Nidal Nafla Harsha, 19, was fatally wounded by Israeli soldiers during protests near the village of Qaffin, in the northern West Bank, on Friday evening.

Bader was pronounced dead, Friday, shortly after he was shot and critically injured by Israeli occupation forces, north of Tulkarem in the occupied West Bank, said the Ministry of Health.

The Palestinian Health Ministry has reported that the young man was shot with a live round in the main artery in his neck, and died from his wounds.

In a show of excessive use of force, Israeli forces resorted to the use of live ammunition, which penetrated the teen’s neck, striking the main carotid artery, resulting in his death only minutes later. He was rushed to Tulkarem governmental hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Bader was shot during protests that erupted near the illegal Israeli Annexation Wall, where many residents marched on their lands.

Soldiers have been deployed across the West Bank to suppress the protests of the Palestinian people expressing their rejection of the so-called ‘deal of the century’. This is the fifth Palestinian youth to be killed in recent days.

Bader was from Qaffin, in the northern West Bank. Source: IMEMC