On Thursday, Israeli soldiers, including undercover forces, killed four Palestinians, including a child and a young man who was executed after being shot and seriously injured, and wounded more than 21 Palestinians, five seriously, in Jenin, in the northern part of the occupied West Bank.
In a statement, the Palestinian Health Ministry said the soldiers killed Yousef Saleh Barakat Shreim, 29, Nidal Amin Zidan Khazem, 28, Omar Mohammad Awadin, 14, and Luay Khalil Zghayyar, 37.
Defense For Children International – Palestine Branch, said on its Twitter account: “Israeli special forces shot 14-year-old Omar Mohammad Omar Awadin in the back with live ammunition while he was riding his bike outside his parents’ shop around 3 p.m. today in Jenin. He was pronounced dead on arrival at Jenin Government Hospital.
The Health Ministry added that the soldiers shot at least 21 Palestinians, including four who suffered life-threatening wounds.
It said 12 Palestinians who were shot with live fire, including four who suffered serious wounds, were rushed to the Ar-Razi Hospital, five were moved to Jenin governmental hospital, six, including one who was seriously injured and one who was rammed by an army jeep, were moved to Ibn Sina Specialized Hospital.
One of the wounded Palestinians is a child, Ahmad Farahna, will be transferred to the Al-Maqasid hospital in Jerusalem, due to the seriousness of his wounds.
Eyewitnesses said undercover Israeli soldiers infiltrated the center of Jenin city and executed the Palestinians before many army vehicles invaded the area and started firing dozens of live rounds at the Palestinians and surrounding homes and properties.
A video from the scene shows an undercover soldier executing the seriously wounded Nidal Amin Khazem after shooting him a live round in the head, even though he was already lying flat on his stomach, motionless and unconscious.
Palestinian medics tried to reach Nidal, but the soldiers did not allow them through before the undercover officer executed him.
There has been a serious increase of cases where Israeli soldiers executed Palestinians, including in January of this year, 2023, when the soldiers killed Ahmad Kahala, 45, a father of five, from point-blank range with two live rounds in the neck near a military roadblock under Yabrud bridge, east of the central West Bank city of Ramallah.
A similar incident occurred on December 2, 2022, in Huwwara town, south of the northern West Bank city of Nablus, when the soldiers executed Ammar Hamdi Mifleh, 22, while he was lying on the ground. After shooting Ammar on the ground once, the soldier then fired a total of four times again. Ammar was unarmed and was lying on the ground when he was shot.
After concluding its offensive in Jenin, the Israeli army said it carried out a joint operation with the undercover forces and intelligence officers, adding that one of the Palestinians, Nidal Amin Khazem, was a senior fighter of the Al-Quds Brigades of the Islamic jihad, and was “behind serious attacks against Israeli targets.”
The army claimed that the soldiers “neutralized a Palestinian who tried to throw a large iron object on the army, ” and stated that the soldiers “fired live rounds at Palestinian fighters who engaged in a fire exchange with the soldiers,” and said “its operations will continue to ensure Israel’s security.”
The Health Ministry said the number of Palestinians killed by Israel since the beginning of this year, is 88 (including one detainee who died in prison) and added that among the slain Palestinians are 17 children and one woman.
It stated that the 35 of the Palestinians are from Jenin governorate, 21 from Nablus, 7 from Hebron, 6 from Jerusalem, 5 from Jericho and the Jordan Valley, 5 from Qalqilia, 3 from Ramallah, 2 from Bethlehem, 1 from Salfit, 1 form Tubas, and 2 from the Gaza Strip.
