A 22-year-old youth on Friday succumbed to wounds sustained during an Israeli military raid on Qalandiya refugee camp south of Ramallah, making him the second Palestinian to be killed by Israeli forces since the morning.
Mustafa Hosni Aslan was shot in the head by Israeli forces when they raided the camp before dawn on Friday, one of three Palestinians wounded in the camp.
After being taken to Ramallah Governmental Hospital he was subsequently moved to Jerusalem’s Hadassah hospital earlier in the day, and he was pronounced dead by Israeli medical officials there just after noon.
His death was announced in Qalandiya refugee camp only hours after it had been announced that he was injured, not killed, leading to a state of shock for many residents upon hearing the news.
Locals said that youths had thrown rocks and broken bottles at the Israeli troops when they stormed the camp, leading to “violent” clashes.
Two other Palestinians were shot during the raid, one in the stomach and one in the side.
Israeli forces confirmed the raid and the shooting, saying that they responded with live fire after a grenade was thrown at Israeli forces in the camp.
Aslan is the second Palestinian shot dead on Friday. Earlier, 14-year-old Mahmoud Jihad Muhammad Dudeen was killed by Israeli forces during clashes in the southern West Bank city of Dura.
The killings come on the one week anniversary of the disappearance of three Israeli youths from the Jewish settlement of Gush Etzion.
Since the disappearance, Israeli forces have killed three Palestinians and injured dozens in a massive search operation across the West Bank as well as nightly bombings of the Gaza Strip.
The Israeli military said on Friday that in the past week, they have raided 1150 “locations,” including homes, charities, universities, and offices, and detained 330 Palestinians, out of which 240 were affiliated with Hamas.
Israel has also imposed widespread closures in the southern West Bank region of Hebron, where Israeli authorities suspect that Hamas-affiliated kidnappers may be hiding.
Although Israeli authorities have presented any evidence publicly of Hamas involvement, they have vowed to “crush” the movement.
(Ma’an – www.maannews.net)
