Palestinian child shot by Israeli army in Jenin dies from wounds

Ramallah, Occupied West Bank – A Palestinian child succumbed to his wounds nearly two weeks after being shot by the Israeli army near the northern occupied West Bank town of Jenin.

The Palestinian Ministry of Health identified the child as 12-year-old Mahmoud Khalil Samoudi from the village of Yamoun in Jenin, noting he was shot in the stomach.

The Israeli army did not comment on the killing.

According to the Palestinian Authority’s official news agency Wafa, Samoudi was shot on September 28.

That day, a large Israeli military group raided Jenin and killed four Palestinian men. At least 40 others were wounded in armed clashes with Palestinian fighters, as well as widespread confrontations with young people.

Israeli forces have been conducting near-daily raids since last year particularly focused on the northern West Bank cities of Jenin and Nablus, where Palestinian armed resistance is becoming more organised.

Army raids increased in March and April following a string of attacks by Palestinians in Israel that killed 20 people.

More than 160 Palestinians have been killed by the Israeli army in the West Bank and besieged Gaza Strip since the beginning of the year with one-third of those in Jenin.

In May 2022, Israeli forces shot dead veteran Al Jazeera TV correspondent Shireen Abu Akleh, 51, while she was covering a military raid on Jenin. Ali al-Samoudi, an Al Jazeera producer, was also shot in the back and he recovered from his wounds.

On Saturday, two Palestinian teenagers were killed in an Israeli military operation in Jenin. They were identified as Ahmad Daraghmeh, 16, and Mahmoud as-Sous, 18. A day prior, Israeli forces killed a 14-year-old Palestinian in Qalqilya city and a 17-year-old in the village of Mazraa al-Gharbiya near Ramallah.

According to the Palestine chapter of Defense for Children International, Israeli soldiers or settlers have killed 25 Palestinians below 18 since the start of the year.

Later on Saturday, an Israeli female soldier was killed in a drive-by shooting at the Shufat refugee camp checkpoint in occupied East Jerusalem.

Israeli forces have since been imposing a siege on the camp, blocking entry and exit. The camp is surrounded on all sides by the Israeli separation wall and military checkpoints.