Israeli forces have fatally shot two Palestinian teenagers on the outskirts of Jerusalem, as reported by the Palestinian Authority. The incident occurred late Thursday night in the town of Kufr Aqab, where the Palestinian health ministry identified the victims as 18-year-old Amr Khaled Ahmed Al-Marbou and 16-year-old Sami Ibrahim Sami Mashayekh.
According to Israeli police, their forces opened fire during a deployment in Kufr Aqab after encountering individuals deemed a threat during clashes that involved dozens of Palestinians throwing rocks and fireworks. The police stated that they engaged with four individuals posing an immediate threat, leading to the gunfire.
The Palestinian Red Crescent reported transporting two individuals from Kufr Aqab to a local hospital, both of whom sustained gunshot wounds during the altercation. Following the violence, hundreds attended the funeral processions for Marbou and Mashayekh, expressing their grief and outrage. Mourners chanted slogans and clapped as the deceased were carried draped in Palestinian flags and adorned with traditional keffiyehs, while relatives gathered to recite prayers.
Witnesses, including Oday al-Shurfa, who was a friend of Marbou, recounted the events leading up to the shooting. Shurfa stated that Marbou was not involved in any violent actions at the time, describing him as standing still and hit in the chest, ultimately succumbing to his injuries on the scene. One of Marbou’s relatives expressed anguish over the violence, questioning the brutality of the incident and noting that another person was critically injured.
In a separate incident, the Palestinian Authority also reported that a 24-year-old man named Younis Walid Mohammed Ashtiyeh, who was identified as a police officer, was shot and killed in the town of Tal, southwest of Nablus. Israeli border police later confirmed that they had “eliminated” a suspect identified as a terrorist responsible for harming a reserve soldier during operational activities the previous day.
The situation in the West Bank, which has been under Israeli occupation since 1967, has escalated significantly since the Hamas attacks on Israel that triggered the recent Gaza conflict in October 2023. Reports indicate that violence has surged, leading to increasing tensions and confrontations in the region.
In Huwara, an area that has seen turmoil, an AFP photographer observed numerous burned-out vehicles and a home ignited in the village of Ammuriya, with local residents attributing these acts to settlers. Residents of Kufr Aqab, which lies in a section of East Jerusalem that Israel annexed but does not receive adequate municipal services, continue to face challenges exacerbated by the Israeli security measures and barriers that separate them from the adjacent Palestinian towns of Ramallah and Al-Bireh.
