Israeli soldiers shot and killed a West Bank teen they say had hurled a ‘block.’ Video shows them shooting him point blank
By Ibrahim Dahman, Max Saltman, Thomas Bordeaux, CNN
(CNN) — The Israeli military said it shot dead a Palestinian “suspected of hurling a block” at soldiers on Saturday during an operation in the occupied West Bank town of Qabatiya.
Video reviewed by CNN shows a soldier shooting the teen when he is just feet away. In an earlier statement, the military did not use the word “suspected,” and said the person “hurled a block toward the soldiers.”
The Palestinian was identified as 16-year-old Rayan Muhammad Abdul Qader Abu Mualla by the Ministry of Heath, citing the Palestinian General Authority of Civil Affairs (PGACA), who said his body is still being held by Israel after he was killed in the Al-Sab’aneh neighborhood in Qabatiya.
A 26-second security camera video shared on social media and geolocated by CNN to Al-Sab’aneh, shows what appears to be the moment Israeli troops shot Abu Mualla.
In the video, a person walks down an alley towards two helmeted soldiers crouched partially behind a corner. The person is just about to reach the corner when one soldier raises his rifle and fires at point blank range, causing the person to collapse backwards.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said in its initial statement that its soldiers had been attacked by a “terrorist.” The video shows the 18 seconds before the shooting, in which time nothing appears to be thrown from the alley the Palestinian teenager comes from. His left hand, however, is obscured. It was not immediately clear who captured the footage, who initially released it, or what happened before the video begins.
On Saturday, the Israeli news site Ynet published what it says is a photo of Abu Mualla’s left hand clutching a chunk of concrete, taken after his death. CNN could not verify whether the photo is of the same person in the security footage.
The Palestinian Red Crescent said that Israeli troops blocked its emergency workers from reaching the scene of the shooting.
A set of videos geolocated by CNN show an ambulance, with its emergency lights on, stopped about 650 feet away from the site of the shooting.
Asked for comment on the video and the allegation that emergency workers were blocked from reaching Abu Mualla, the IDF said: “Yesterday (Saturday), a Palestinian suspected of hurling a block at IDF soldiers was shot. The incident is under review.”
Late on Saturday, Abu Mualla’s school announced on Facebook that it would close on Sunday in honor of his memory and pushed exams a week ahead.
In a separate incident on Saturday, the Ministry of Health said the IDF shot and killed a 22-year-old Palestinian man named Ahmed Saed Ziyoud in Silat al-Harathiya, a town north of Jenin in the West Bank.
The IDF said in a statement on Telegram that it shot an individual in Silat al-Harathiya who “hurled an explosive” toward soldiers.
On Sunday, the military wing of the Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine, said he was a fighter in the Al-Quds Brigades. He was shot by an Israeli sniper’s bullet during the IDF storming of the town.
CNN’s Dana Karni contributed to this report.
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