Ramallah, February 18, 2025—A 15-year-old Palestinian boy died Monday night after being struck by an Israeli drone-fired missile earlier this month.
Diyaa al-Din Ahmad Omar Sabaaneh, 15, was standing in front of his father’s shop around 8:50 p.m. on February 1 in the western neighborhood of Qabatiya, south of Jenin in the northern occupied West Bank, when an Israeli drone strike targeted a vehicle carrying two young Palestinian men, according to documentation collected by Defense for Children International - Palestine. Shrapnel from the strike hit Diyaa al-Din in the left side of his head, knocking him unconscious. Diyaa al-Din fell into a coma and succumbed to his injuries on February 17 around 10 p.m. at Ibn Sina Specialized Hospital in Jenin.
“Israeli forces routinely deploy aerial attacks in densely populated civilian areas with no regard for Palestinian children and families in the area,” said Ayed Abu Eqtaish, accountability program director at DCIP. “It is a clear violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention—a war crime—to carry out these attacks that frequently kill and injure Palestinian children with impunity.”
After the strike, Diyaa al-Din was transported to Qabatiya Medical Center for an initial evaluation then an ambulance brought him to Al-Razi Hospital in Jenin, where he received a CT scan that revealed that shrapnel was lodged in his brain and causing two hemorrhages. He remained in the intensive care unit at Al-Razi Hospital for about 40 hours, after which he was transferred to Ibn Sina Specialized Hospital in Jenin. Doctors were unable to operate due to the severity of his condition, and Diyaa al-Din was connected to life support and oxygen until his death.
Israeli forces have killed 14 Palestinian children in the occupied West Bank in 2025, according to documentation collected by DCIP. Eight children were killed by Israeli drone strikes, five children were shot and killed with live ammunition, and one child with unknown nature of injury.
In 2024, Israeli forces and settlers killed at least 93 Palestinian children in the occupied West Bank, according to documentation collected by DCIP. Israeli forces and settlers shot and killed 71 Palestinian children with live ammunition, 17 Palestinian children were killed in drone strikes, three Palestinian children were killed in an Israeli warplane airstrike, one child was killed by Israeli-fired ground shell, and one child was killed by unexploded ordnance (UXO) left behind by Israeli forces.
