Israeli Troops Fire on Vehicle Accelerating Toward Them in West Bank, Killing Palestinian Infant
A seven-month-old Palestinian boy died and his parents were wounded when Israeli troops fired at a vehicle near Hebron. The Israel Defense Forces said soldiers perceived a threat and are reviewing the incident.
rediff.comThe Israel Defense Forces said its troops opened fire on June 5 after a vehicle accelerated toward them in the Tel Rumeida area south of Hebron in the West Bank. One soldier fired single shots at the vehicle, the military stated. The Palestinian Health Ministry identified the dead infant as seven-month-old Sam Fahd Abu Haikal.
It said his parents were also wounded in the incident and were in moderate condition.
According to the IDF, three Palestinians were injured in the shooting and were evacuated for medical treatment. The military said the incident is under review and expressed “deep sorrow for any harm caused to uninvolved individuals.”
The baby’s grandmother told reporters the family had been driving in the area, stopped their car upon seeing Israeli military vehicles and soldiers ahead, and that shots were then fired toward them. She said one bullet struck her grandson in the face, passed through his head, lodged in his mother’s cheek, and grazed the father’s finger.
The IDF account described the vehicle as accelerating toward troops in an area that has seen repeated incidents of violence against soldiers. No publicly released evidence has documented the precise speed or distance of the vehicle at the moment shots were fired. The family has not been identified by Israeli authorities as suspects in a deliberate ramming attack.
More than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank since the war in Gaza began after the Hamas-led attack on Israel on 7 October 2023, according to Palestinian tallies. In that attack, about 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken hostage. Palestinian health authorities say more than 70,600 people have been killed in Gaza since then.
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