An investigation by the human rights organization Amnesty reveals that the Israeli army has used excessive violence in the occupied West Bank since the outbreak of the Gaza war.
Israeli soldiers have carried out illegal executions in the West Bank, the human rights organization Amnesty International says based on its investigation.
The West Bank is a Palestinian territory occupied by Israel on the Jordanian border.
Israel has increased raids targeting Palestinian militants in the region since Hamas attacked Israel on October 7. Bystanders, many of whom are minors, also often die in raids.
Amnesty has investigated four cases in which Israel has used lethal force and illegally executed a total of 20 Palestinians. Seven of those executed were children.
Three of the cases take place in October and one in November. Amnesty has interviewed 12 people, ten of whom were eyewitnesses, such as first responders and residents of the area. Amnesty has also analyzed images and videos related to the cases.
Amnesty also says that Israel has used unnecessary and disproportionate lethal force in mostly peaceful demonstrations and has prevented the injured from receiving medical treatment.
The soldiers shot the 15-year-old
In one case, Israeli forces killed a 15-year-old during a raid Taha Mahamidin October 19 at Nur Shams refugee camp.
Israeli soldiers reportedly shot Mahamid dead in front of his home when he came to see if the Israeli forces had left. Based on eyewitness accounts and videos reviewed by Amnesty, Mahamid was unarmed.
– They didn’t give him a chance. My brother was killed in an instant. Three bullets were fired without mercy. There was no confrontation, Mahamid’s sister Fatima tells Amnesty.
The witness says that the boy’s father Ibrahim Mahamidin while trying to carry his injured son to safety, the soldiers shot him in the back. The man suffered serious internal organ damage.
According to Amnesty, the cases should be investigated as possible war crimes.
– These illegal executions blatantly violate human rights treaties. Israel maintains a system of oppression and control of the Palestinians, which allows the perpetrators not to be punished, says Amnesty’s representative Erika Guevara-Rosas.
Last year was the deadliest in 20 years
Last year, at least 507 Palestinians were killed in the West Bank, of which at least 81 were children. This is the highest number of Palestinians killed in the region since 2005.
In January, Israeli forces killed more than 60 Palestinians, including at least 13 children.