Palestinian teenager latest victim of gun violence in Israel's Tira

An 19-year-old became the latest victim of a spate of killings in the Palestinian town of Tira, in central Israel, on Wednesday night, after being shot dead on her own front doorstep under mysterious circumstances.

According to witnesses, Zubaida Mansour was killed by an unknown assailant who entered her home and shot her at close range. However, details of the incident - as well as the motive or identity of the attacker - remain unknown.

Her two sisters were reportedly in the house at the time of the shooting.

Mansour was rushed to hospital in critical condition, but was pronounced dead by medical staff after several attempts to revive her.

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According to friends of the family, Mansour's parents died last year and the sisters lived alone in the house. Mansour was not thought to have any enemies and her death was completely unexpected. 

The killing is the latest in a wave of violence to take hold of Tira, home to some 25,000 Palestinian citizens of Israel.

Zubaida Mansour's murder is the third to hit Tira this year.  Palestinian-majority cities in central Israel, close to the West Bank, have witnessed a total of 18 such killings since the beginning of 2018, according to Arab 48.

Critics say that crime in Palestinian-Israeli cities are usually met with silence and inaction from the Israeli police, who choose not to investigate these incidents, control weapons use, or bring the perpetrators to justice.