Three Palestinian Children Murdered by «Israel» in One Week
Local Editor
"Israeli" forces shot and killed a Palestinian boy and critically injured three others in the central occupied West Bank on Thursday night, bringing to three the number of children killed by soldiers in the past week.
Video and photos appear to contradict the "Israeli" entity's claims about the slaying of 17-year-old Muhammad al-Hattab, who was shot in the chest and shoulder.
"Israeli" forces in a military tower opened heavy fire on the car in which al-Hattab and the other youths were traveling, Palestinian media reported.
An "Israeli" army spokesperson told media that the youths had thrown firebombs towards a food stand near the Beit El settlement adjacent to the Jalazone refugee camp.
Soldiers in the Golani Brigade - whose fighters had incited the killing of Palestinians on social media and are suspected of perpetrating war crimes in Gaza - shot at the youths after they had exited the car next to the settlement, the army claimed.
According to an army spokesperson, "In response to the threat, ‘Israeli' forces in the area fired towards the suspects, and several hits were confirmed. The suspects then fled the scene."
But the military's assertion that the youths were shot outside the vehicle and managed to flee appeared to be contradicted by photos and video showing the driver's seat of the car stained with blood, shattered windows and bullet marks on the vehicle's exterior.
After the youth's slaying, residents of Jalazone camp, where al-Hattab lived, confronted "Israeli" forces deployed at the entrance of the Beit El settlement.
"Israeli forces fired live fire, rubber-coated steel bullets, stun grenades and tear gas at protesters, while Palestinian youth threw rocks and Molotov cocktails at soldiers," the Ma'an News Agency reported.
Thousands of Palestinians marched through Jalazone camp during al-Hattab's funeral on Friday.
One day before Muhammad al-Hattab was shot dead, 15-year-old Yousif Abu Athra was martyred by "Israeli" shelling in Gaza when he and two adult friends were approximately 300 meters from the boundary with the entity.
The boy's father said his son's body was "riddled with shrapnel, including injuries to his head," Defense for Children International - Palestine [DCIP] stated.
Murad Abu Ghazi, 17, was hit with a live bullet that entered his back and passed through his heart, killing him, at a military post near the southern West Bank city of al-Khalil [Hebron] last Friday.
According to DCIP, a 16-year-old was shot with live fire during the incident and was in moderate-to-critical condition.
An "Israeli" journalist reported that Abu Ghazi and his companions were ambushed by soldiers who shot at the group as they fled.
"Israeli forces appear to routinely resort to intentional lethal force in situations not justified by international norms, killing children with impunity," said Ayed Abu Eqtaish, a program director with DCIP.
"Live ammunition is increasingly used against Palestinian children in the West Bank since 2014, while children in Gaza are shot, shelled and bombed in violation of international law," he added.
Thirty-five Palestinian children were murdered by "Israeli" soldiers, police and armed settlers in 2016, all but four of them in the occupied West Bank, making it the most deadly year for children there in the past decade.
Source: EI, Edited by website team
