A Palestinian teenager was critically wounded late Sunday after an Israeli soldier shot him in the head with a rubber-coated steel bullet, relatives said.

Muhammad Abd Al-Majid Sunuqrut, 16, from Wadi al-Joz suffered a fractured skull after being shot, his father said.

The teenager was speaking on his mobile phone while walking to a nearby mosque for late evening prayers when he was hit, in what his father said was an unprovoked attack.

He underwent emergency surgery at Hadassah Medical Center to stop bleeding on his brain and to remove bone fragments caused by the impact of the bullet.

The teen is currently unconscious in an intensive care unit and is said to be in a critical condition.

Muhammad had been preparing for the new school year, his father said, adding that Israeli forces have been provoking local Wadi al-Joz residents in recent weeks by firing tear gas, rubber coated-bullets and skunk spray.

(Ma’an – www.maannews.net)