Israeli military says it is examining killing of Palestinian teen in West Bank
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
Palestinian officials said the teen was shot and killed on Dec 20 in the West Bank town of Qabatiya (above) during a raid by the Israeli military.
PHOTO: AFP
Follow topic:
QABATIYA, West Bank – The Israeli military said it is reviewing an incident in the occupied West Bank in which soldiers shot dead a 16-year-old Palestinian who they said had thrown a brick at them, after CCTV footage appeared to show he was not doing so when shot.
Asked about the video, an Israeli military spokesperson said: “A Palestinian suspected of hurling a block at IDF (Israeli Defense Forces) soldiers was shot. The incident is under review.”
Palestinian officials said that Rayyan Mohammad Abu Mualla was shot and killed on Dec 20 in the northern West Bank town of Qabatiya, during a raid by the Israeli military.
The Israeli military initially said on Dec 20: “During IDF operational activity in the area of Qabatiya, a terrorist hurled a block towards the soldiers, who responded with fire and eliminated the terrorist.”
CCTV footage shows two Israeli soldiers – one crouching and the other standing on a lit street corner – and a third soldier appearing to take up a position in an adjacent street leading to the same corner.
A person is then seen walking down a street and as he reaches the corner, he is shot by the crouching soldier and falls back onto the ground.
The video does not appear to show him throwing a block or holding one.
The video starts six minutes before the shooting, showing the streets empty and then a military vehicle driving down the street as one person peers off a rooftop and another through a window as the soldiers arrive at the scene.
The person who is shot appears in the video three seconds before the shooting, and it is not possible to ascertain what the person was doing or holding before he is seen.
The footage was obtained from the owner of the security camera and its location and date were verified by Reuters. The incident is partly obscured because of the angle of the camera and the low light.
Abu Mualla’s mother Ibtihal said the Israeli military had taken his body away.
CCTV footage from around 22 minutes after the shooting appears to show his body being placed by soldiers on a stretcher and driven away in a military vehicle 11 minutes after that, 33 minutes after the shooting.
“They could have shot him in the leg, my son didn’t throw anything towards them,” said Ms Mualla. “I want to bury my son with dignity,” she said.
The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Since January, when Israel began stepping up raids in the northern West Bank, 53 Palestinian minors have been killed by Israeli forces, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.
Israel says the raids are meant to tackle Palestinian militants and thwart attacks against Israelis. REUTERS
