A Palestinian youngster was murdered by Israeli troops on Thursday in Nablus, a city in the West Bank where armed skirmishes between militants and Israeli authorities broke out, according to the Palestinian health ministry.
Amer Abu Zeitoun, 16, was killed by a bullet to the head fired by Israeli occupation soldiers during an attack on Nablus this morning, according to the health ministry.
During an operation to apprehend two people, the Israeli military claimed that “armed suspects fired towards the soldiers, who responded with live fire.”
Local Palestinian terrorist organization The Lions’ Den claimed responsibility for the nighttime fighting in Nablus’ Balata refugee camp in a statement.
Zeitoun is the fourth Palestinian killed by Israeli forces in the West Bank since the start of the year.
Adam Essam Shaker Ayyad, 15, was slain in Bethlehem on Tuesday when Israel claimed its forces opened fire on individuals throwing rocks and Molotov bombs.
More than 150 Palestinians were killed in 2022, according to the United Nations, making it the deadliest year in the West Bank since records have been kept there since 2005.
Fears of a military escalation in the Palestinian territories Israel has occupied since the 1967 Six-Day War have been raised following the inauguration last week of the most right-wing administration in Israel’s history, led by Benjamin Netanyahu.
Two of Netanyahu’s extreme-right coalition partners, who have a history of inflammatory remarks about Palestinians, have taken charge of critical powers regarding the West Bank.
Bezalel Smotrich oversees Israeli policy towards settlement in the region, while Itamar Ben-Gvir, who is minister of national security, is in charge of the border police that are present there.
According to an AFP count, they assumed office at the conclusion of a year that saw more than 26 Israelis and 230 Palestinians slain in Israel and the Palestinian territories.
