Six Palestinians killed by Israeli forces in 24 hours

Six Palestinians in the occupied West Bank were killed by Israeli forces between Wednesday and Thursday, reported the Palestinian health ministry.

In the town of Silwad, east of Ramallah, thousands of Palestinians took part in the funeral of 18-year-old Amr Alian, who was killed by Israeli forces who raided the town late on Wednesday. 

The crowds followed a procession carrying the young man's body to Silwad cemetery, amidst waving flags, chants of anger and gunfire in the air.

Amr's cousin told The New Arab that he had been with his younger brother, Mahdi, coming out of the local mosque in Silwad at the end of the evening prayer, when the Israeli army raided the town.

"Their mother called Mahdi and told him to come home for iftar with Amr, but Amr insisted on joining the young men who confronted the raiding soldiers with stones."

⭕️🇵🇸| #IDF is sending additional reinforcements to #Silwad as the situation is escalating.#Palestine #سلواد #فلسطين pic.twitter.com/q8jKackhQU

— Ilyas (@IntelPasha) April 13, 2022

Israeli security forces entered Silwad with dozens of armoured vehicles, firing live bullets at Palestinian protesters, one of which fatally struck Amr Alian.

Local media agencies reported that during the raid Israeli soldiers surrounded a building and ordered several men to surrender. Israeli media said that Israeli forces arrested members of a Palestinian cell who had allegedly planned attacks against Israel.

"Amr was a calm, caring boy who always helped people around", his father told The New Arab. "He worked as a porter, and spent most his money on my and his mother's medicine and needs, although he wanted to save money and go to college".

Israeli military jeep tried to run over these Palestinian youth in Silwad in Ramallah tonight, but watch what happened!#FreePalestine pic.twitter.com/eTGhsgNtHJ

— Sarah Hassan (@Sarah_Hassan94) April 13, 2022

Two more in Jenin

In the north of the occupied West Bank, Israeli forces also raided the village of Kufr Dan early on Thursday, near Jenin, attacking residents and killing two young men.

The two killed were identified as Mustafa Abul Rob, in his twenties, from the neighbouring village of Mesiliyah, and Shaas Kamamji, in his late twenties, brother of Ayham Kamamji, one of the six escapees of the Gilboa prison break back in September.

The father of Shaas Kamamji told Palestinian media that the deceased had been recently married and that he and his new wife were planning to have a child soon.

"They didn't take him, God did, thank God for everything," his father exclaimed.

Onslaught!
Graphic footage out of Kufr Dan as Israeli forces raid and shoot at Palestinian youth.
Reports of at least two Palestinians killed!!!! pic.twitter.com/wKANHHIyiC

— Jalal (@JalalAK_jojo) April 14, 2022

One in Nablus near 'Yousef tomb'

Earlier on Wednesday, Israeli forces also killed a 34-year-old Palestinian man during a raid on the city of Nablus.

The Palestinian man was identified as Mohammad Assaf, from the village of Kufr Lakef, near Qalailiyah in the northwest part of the occupied West Bank. Medical sources said that he had died from a bullet hitting him in the chest.

Assaf was a lawyer, father of three children and a member and activist in the PLO-run "Wall and Colonisation Resistance Commission", a para-state body that coordinates protest activities against settlements and the separation wall.

Israeli forces had entered the eastern part of Nablus city making their way to the "Yousef's Tomb", a religious site in the eastern part of the city when Palestinians confronted them by throwing stones and burning tires, to which Israeli forces responded with tear gas and live fire, killing Assaf and wounding at least ten.

This morning Mohamad Asaf (34) was killed by Israeli forces #Nablus as he was taking his kids to school. He was a lawyer defending Palestinian land from #Zionist colonization. He's not the 5th in 48 hrs, he's Mohammad one of tens of thousands of Palestinian killed by Israel pic.twitter.com/MmOICiMNOL

— Najwan Berekdar (@NajwanBer) April 13, 2022

On Monday, the religious site was partially damaged by unknown individuals. The Israeli raid on Nablus on Wednesday was justified as part of a plan to repair the damaged part of  ‘Yousef's Tomb’.

Israeli prime minister Neftali Bennet had previously declared that "We will not tolerate the damaging of Jewish holy place", adding that his government will "make sure the damage will be repaired."

On his part, the Palestinian governor of Nablus, Ibrahim Ramadan, said in a statement to the press that the Yousef's Tomb "is registered as a holy place in the Palestinian ministry of religious affairs and therefore its restoration and protection are the responsibility of the Palestinian Authority."

"Israeli settlers began to claim the place as a Jewish holy site less than twenty years ago," Ghassan Daghlas, coordinator of settlement monitoring in the north of the West Bank, told The New Arab. 

"Today the Israeli army raids the eastern part of Nablus almost on a weekly basis, in order to allow settlers to enter the site and perform religious rituals in it, often wounding or killing someone in the process," he added.

In Beita and Husan near Bethlehem 

In the south of the occupied West Bank, Israeli forces also on Wednesday night attacked Palestinian protesters in the village of Husan, west of Bethlehem, where Israeli forces had killed a mother of six children earlier on Sunday.

The mayor of Husan told Palestinian media that Israeli forces fired live bullets at protesters, killing 14-year-old Fouad Hamamrah.

A sixth Palestinian was pronounced dead on Thursday in the afternoon in the village of Beita, south of Nablus, after he succumbed to injuries sustained on Wednesday, by Israeli forces during protests on Mount Sabih, outside of the village.

Fawaz Hamayel, 45-years-old, was a father to three teenagers and worked as a social activist overseeing a youth program for the Jerusalem governorate, as well as was a farmer and a well-known protester against Israeli settlements.

Qais and Aws lead the funeral of their father, Fawaz Hamayel, who was killed by Israeli bullets in the town of Beita, southeast of the city of Nablus pic.twitter.com/s2squPOe3T

— Ramy Abdu| رامي عبده (@RamAbdu) April 14, 2022

"He loved the land and loved the cultural heritage of Palestine too," Hamza Aqrabawi, a Palestinian folk artist and a close friend of Hamayel told The New Arab.

"He helped us immensely in gathering the oral testimonies and popular tradition of the region of Nablus, and he was always present at all protest activities against settlements. This is definitely a huge loss," Aqrabawi added.

Palestinian factions declared a general strike in several parts of the West Bank as a sign of mourning for those killed by Israel from Wednesday until the end of the weekend.

The factions also issued calls for protest against the Israeli killings, with a march planned to be held in Ramallah city on Saturday night.

Tensions have been high in the occupied West Bank since the beginning of April, with 14 Palestinians killed by Israeli forces. Some 10 Israelis were also killed in separate stabbing and shooting attacks in Israel by Palestinian individuals.