Occupied West Bank: Israeli Military Shoots 2-Year-Old Palestinian Toddler in Head
According to Palestinian activist Bilal Tamimi, who spoke to the official Palestinian news agency Wafa, Israeli soldiers fired at a vehicle at the entrance of Nabi Saleh, where the boy and his father were standing. They were taken to a hospital in the illegal Israeli settlement of Nevei Tsof.
The boy was later transferred to a hospital in Israel and the father to one in Ramallah. Their conditions were not immediately known.
The shooting sparked clashes between Israeli forces and Palestinians in Nabi Saleh, which saw one Palestinian injured by rubber-coated bullets. Tamimi was also shot in the hand by a rubber bullet while using his phone to record the events. He was taken to hospital.
The Israeli army confirmed that its forces were operating in Nabi Saleh "to apprehend a terror suspect" and said that "violent riots" had broken out. It said its troops had responded with live fire and identified "hits" after Palestinians opened fire on them and threw explosive devices and molotov cocktails.
The incident came amid a surge of violence in the occupied West Bank, where Israeli forces and settlers have killed more than 160 Palestinians so far this year. On Tuesday, a 15-year-old Palestinian boy was killed by Israeli live fire in a refugee camp near Nablus. The Israeli military said it was responding to "a violent riot" during an arrest operation.
Nabi Saleh has been a site of regular protests against Israeli occupation and settlement expansion. The village is home to prominent activist Ahed Tamimi, who was jailed for eight months in 2018 for slapping an Israeli soldier after her cousin was shot in the head by a rubber bullet.
Source: Agencies
