Israel army, settlers kill 2 Palestinians in separate incidents
Israeli forces shot dead a Palestinian man on Friday in the city of Jenin, in the north of the occupied West Bank, with the military saying he had attempted to stab a soldier.
In a separate incident in the southern West Bank, Israeli settler gunfire killed a 17-year-old, the Palestinian health ministry said.
In Jenin, 58-year-old Fathi Zidan Hazem, "died from injuries sustained after being shot by Israeli forces early Friday," the Palestinian health ministry said in a statement, adding that Israel was withholding his body.
The Israeli military said a "terrorist armed with a knife attempted to stab an IDF soldier" while troops were operating in the area of Jenin.
"The soldiers responded by firing toward the terrorist and eliminating him," it said, adding no injuries were reported among troops.
Hazem was a retired colonel in the Palestinian National Security Forces.
In April 2022, after his son, Raad Hazem, carried out a shooting spree in Tel Aviv in which he killed three Israelis and wounded several others, Israeli authorities demanded that Fathi Hazem hand himself in.
His son was shot dead by Israeli forces after a massive manhunt.
A second son, Abdul Rahman Hazem, was killed during an Israeli military raid targeting alleged militants in the Jenin refugee camp in September 2022.
AFP footage from the scene on Friday showed a pool of blood and bullets scattered among groceries in the family's home.
A Palestinian eyewitness, who declined to give her name to AFP, said Israeli forces raided her neighbour's house in the early hours and told Hazem to raise his hands, which he refused to do.
"He then attacked them with a knife, and they shot him seven times in front of his 10-year-old son. They dragged him down the stairs and took him with them," she said.
- 'Settler gunfire' -
Meanwhile, in the Palestinian town of Sair, near the southern city of Hebron, "17-year-old Karim Sanad Raja Shalaldeh was killed by settler gunfire" during an attack, the Palestinian health ministry said.
A family member and a medical source at the Al-Mezan Hospital in Hebron confirmed his death.
The attack also left a 70-year-old man injured, according to Palestinian official news agency Wafa.
The Israeli military said troops were dispatched to the area after a report of Palestinians throwing rocks at "Israeli civilians who were present in the area without advanced authorisation."
"As a result of the rock hurling, Israeli civilians were injured," it said, adding that "a security official opened fire in the area, and there are Palestinian casualties as a result of the shooting."
The military told AFP the "security official" is a member of a rapid response security squad for a West Bank settlement.
It said "soldiers operated to disperse the confrontation and removed the Israeli civilians from the area."
Violence in the West Bank, occupied by Israel since 1967, has surged since the Gaza war began with Hamas's October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.
Since then, at least 1,099 Palestinians, including militants, have been killed by Israeli troops or settlers, according to Palestinian figures.
Official Israeli data shows that at least 48 Israelis, both civilians and security personnel, have been killed in attacks by Palestinians or during Israeli military operations.
Source: Agence France Presse
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