Israeli forces kill Palestinian teenager, wounds dozens in Nablus

"Ghaith was only a child, obviously small in size," Rafeeq Yameen, the victim's father, told The New Arab. "He was a good boy, loved by everyone, always polite and studied hard." 
3 min read
West Bank
25 May, 2022
Gaith Yameen is the 56th Palestinian and the 10th child to be killed by Israeli forces in 2022. [Getty]

Israeli forces killed a Palestinian teenager and wounded around 40 Palestinians during a military raid on  Nablus in the northern West Bank, the Palestinian health ministry and the Palestinian Red Crescent Society reported on Wednesday.

The victim was identified as Ghaith Yameen, a 16-year-old 10th-grader from Nablus city, who was killed by a bullet that struck the back of his head during confrontations between young Palestinians and the Israeli army.

"The Israeli army entered the eastern part of Nablus after 10 pm on Tuesday, escorting a bus of Israeli settlers who headed to "Joseph's Tomb" to perform Jewish prayers, as they regularly do, and withdrew after 4 am," Ameen Abu Wardeh, a local resident of the eastern part of Nablus told The New Arab.

"Joseph's Tomb" is a religious site in eastern Nablus which is regularly raided by the Israeli army and settlers, who claim it to be a Jewish religious site.

"Shortly after the Israeli army entered the city, the youth began to confront them with stones and Molotov cocktails," Abu Wardeh said.

"The Israeli soldiers fired large quantities of tear gas and rubber bullets which left tens of injured, but they also fired live bullets, hitting two children," Abu Wardeh noted. "One is a youngster who was hospitalized, the other was Gaith Yameen, who was killed." 

"Ghaith was only a child, obviously small in size," Rafeeq Yameen, the victim's father, told The New Arab. "He was a good boy, loved by everyone, always polite and studied hard." 

"Ghaith was a very good student. Just yesterday, he obtained a 12 out of 15 grade in a technology exam," Mujahed Hammami, Ghaith's teacher at the Abdel Hamid Sayeh Boys Secondary School in Nablus, told The New Arab.

"Ghaith was also very moved by the events of Jenin and Jerusalem", Hamami added. "When I asked him about a necklace he wore he told me it was the picture of one of the youths of Nablus killed months ago."

Shops and businesses in Nablus closed on Wednesday morning until the burial of Ghaith Yameen, in mourning. 

For his part, Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh condemned the killing of Yameen and called on the international community to "provide protection for Palestinian children and the Palestinian people in general."

According to human rights groups, eight Palestinian minors have been killed as result of Israeli occupation between January and April.

Ghaith Yameen is the second Palestinian minor killed by Israeli forces in May, raising the number of Palestinian children killed in 2022 to 10, and the total number of Palestinians killed since the beginning of the year to 56.