In November, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to expedite house demolitions in the West Bank and east Jerusalem, which he said were “one of the most efficient tools” in discouraging Palestinian attacks.
Advertisement
Shortly afterwards, Khalil Al Shalaldah, aged 16, from Sa’ir, was also killed by Israeli forces after he allegedly attempted to stab an Israeli soldier at Beit ‘Einun junction.
Two Palestinian suspects were shot dead at the scene, while the third Palestinian succumbed to his wounds later, it added.
“We were three cars awaiting our turn to cross, the two men who were killed were in the auto ahead of mine”.
“A large number of soldiers came about 2:30 am (0030 GMT), blowing open the locks, breaking into three buildings and banning the university guards from approaching”, Ghassan Khatib, vice president of Birzeit University, told AFP.
The bloodshed has raised fear of wider escalation a decade after the last Palestinian uprising, or intifada, subsided.
A love story between an Israeli Jew and a Palestinian Muslim has topped the list of bestsellers after Israel’s education ministry refused to allow the book on to the school curriculum.
The Palestinian Wafa news agency named those killed as Ali Muhammad Aqqab Abu-Maryam and Said Judah Abu-al-Wafa and said they had been shot “in cold blood”.
A military spokeswoman, asked about the taxi driver’s account, said the incident was still being reviewed.
Al-Quds also reported that Israeli settlers broke into and performed Talmudic rituals at the historic castle of al-Mureq west of the Hebron’s town of Dura.
On Thursday, Israeli forces had fatally shot four other Palestinians whom Tel Aviv claimed had carried out two separate stabbing attacks in the West Bank.
Israel often retains the bodies of Palestinians killed during attacks, a measure that has drawn criticism from rights groups as well as Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas.
Advertisement
The U.S. long standing position on Israeli settlement activity, which is clear and has not changed, is that it is ” illegitimate and counter-productive to the cause of peace”, Kirby said.
