Israeli troops kill four Palestinians in West Bank refugee camp

AFP | Al-Fara refugee camp

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

Israeli forces shot dead four Palestinians in a West Bank refugee camp Monday, the Palestinian health ministry said, taking the toll in the occupied territory to over 300 during the Gaza war.

Mohammad Samir Milhem, 17, his brother Hikmat, 24, and Yazan Khatib, 20, were shot in the head by Israeli troops in the Al-Fara camp near Tubas, the ministry said. Rashed Habib al-Aydi, 17, was shot in the chest.

Health officials in Ramallah say 301 Palestinians have now been killed by Israeli forces or settlers in the West Bank since the war in Gaza erupted with the attack by Hamas on October 7.

An AFP photographer saw mourners holding a funeral later on Monday, carrying bodies aloft through a crowd.

Elsewhere firefighters sprayed down burnt-out cars, and a boy comforted his crying sister.

The Israeli army said it was taking part in "counterterrorism activity" in the refugee camp.

"During the activity, terrorists hurled explosive devices and fired at the forces, who responded with live fire. Hits were identified," it said.

Earlier this month Israeli forces shot dead at least six Palestinians including a 14-year-old boy in a raid on the refugee camp, the health ministry said. The army confirmed at that time it had conducted a "counter-terrorism" operation.

In a separate incident on Monday, a 27-year-old woman was wounded in "a shooting towards a car" north of Ramallah, Israel's Magen David Adom emergency medical services said.

She had been travelling with a man and one-month-old baby, who were not injured, near the Ateret settlement and was taken to hospital "in a moderate condition".

Violence in the West Bank, occupied by Israel since 1967, has flared since the outbreak of the war in Gaza.

The deadliest ever Gaza war began with unprecedented attacks by Hamas on October 7, when the group killed 1,139 people, mostly civilians, and abducted around 250, according to an AFP tally based on the latest official Israeli figures.

The health ministry in the Hamas-run territory says Israel's retaliatory assault in Gaza has killed at least 19,453 people, mostly women and children.