Ramallah, July 24, 2024—A 13-year-old Palestinian boy succumbed to his wounds on July 23 after Israeli forces shot him on July 11 in the northern occupied West Bank.
Saif Ziad Ali Omair, 13, was shot with live ammunition by an Israeli soldier inside a heavily armored military vehicle near the western entrance of the Palestinian village of Maithaloun, south of Jenin in the northern occupied West bank, according to documentation collected by Defense for Children International - Palestine. Saif was struck with four bullets in his abdomen, hand, leg and pelvis from a distance of 20 to 30 meters (65 to 99 feet) away, while allegedly throwing stones toward Israeli soldiers alongside other Palestinian youth. He fell to the ground, and an Israeli soldier stepped out of the military vehicle and fired a fifth bullet into his chest.
“Palestinian children live in a hyper-militarized context where Israeli military incursions into Palestinian communities to arrest and intimidate Palestinian civilians is the norm,” said Ayed Abu Eqtaish, accountability program director at DCIP. “During these incursions, Israeli forces routinely resort to intentional lethal force in situations not justified under international law and make no effort to impartially investigate or ensure that Israeli soldiers act in accordance with international standards. Instead, all Palestinians, including children, are considered targets.”
Saif remained lying on the ground bleeding for five minutes and was first taken by a private vehicle toward the Turkish Governmental Hospital in Tubas. Along the way, an ambulance took the child and transported him to the hospital.
Saif was transferred to Rafidia Governmental Hospital in Nablus due to his critical situation after two hours of receiving essential first aid at the Turkish Governmental Hospital. Upon arrival at Rafidia, he underwent multiple surgeries and was placed in the intensive care unit.
Saif succumbed to his wounds around 8:30 p.m. on July 23. Saif was a resident of Balaa village northeast of Tulkarem and was visiting his grandparents in Maithaloun on July 11.
Israeli special forces carried out an incursion into the Palestinian town of Al-Jadida, south of Jenin, around 4 p.m on July 11 and arrested two young Palestinian men. Israeli military reinforcements arrived in Al-Jadida and the nearby town of Siris shortly after. As Israeli forces withdrew, they passed the Palestinian village of Maithaloun, where Palestinian residents confronted passing Israeli military vehicles.
The military incursion resulted in injuring four Palestinian children and killing Ali Hasan Ali Rabaya, who was shot under the armpit by an Israeli soldier inside a heavily armored military vehicle from a distance of 20 to 40 meters (65 to 131 feet) away.
Israeli forces and settlers have killed 58 Palestinian children in the occupied West Bank in 2024, including two United States citizens, according to documentation collected by DCIP.
139 Palestinian children have been killed in the occupied West Bank since October 7, according to documentation collected by DCIP, when the Israeli military began a full-scale military offensive on the Gaza Strip.
In 2023, Israeli forces and settlers killed at least 121 Palestinian children in the occupied West Bank, according to documentation collected by DCIP. Israeli forces and settlers shot and killed 103 Palestinian children with live ammunition, 13 Palestinian children were killed in drone strikes, four Palestinian children were killed by missiles fired from a U.S.-sourced Apache attack helicopter, and one child was killed in an Israeli warplane airstrike.
Under international law, intentional lethal force is only justified in circumstances where a direct threat to life or of serious injury is present. However, investigations and evidence collected by DCIP regularly suggest that Israeli forces use lethal force against Palestinian children in circumstances that may amount to extrajudicial or wilful killings.