A Palestinian teenager who allegedly hurled a Molotov cocktail at an army post in the West Bank was shot dead on Saturday evening, the military and Palestinian health officials said.
The Palestinian Authority health ministry said 16-year-old Milad Munzir al-Raaei was fatally shot in the back at the entrance to the al-Aroub refugee camp, between Hebron and Bethlehem in the southern West Bank.
The Israel Defense Forces said a number of Palestinians hurled firebombs at troops stationed at a post near al-Aroub.
“IDF soldiers responded with riot dispersal means and live fire,” the military said, adding that at least one suspect was hit.
A military source said the IDF was aware of the PA’s report that the suspect had died.
The IDF added that no soldiers were hurt during the incident.
#صورة استشهاد الفتى ميلاد منذر الراعي ١٥ عامًا من مخيم العروب شمال الخليل متأثرًا بإصابته برصاص الاحتلال pic.twitter.com/w2YUjatfJW
— Newpress | نيو برس (@NewpressPs) September 9, 2023
Violence has surged across the West Bank over the past year and a half, with a rise in Palestinian shooting attacks against Israeli civilians and troops, near-nightly arrest raids by the military, and an uptick in revenge attacks by extremist Jewish settlers against Palestinians.
Palestinian attacks in Israel and the West Bank since the beginning of the year have left 27 civilians and three soldiers dead, and several others seriously wounded.
According to a tally by The Times of Israel, 181 West Bank and East Jerusalem Palestinians have been killed during the same period — the majority during clashes with security forces or while carrying out attacks, but some were uninvolved civilians and others were killed under unclear circumstances, including by armed Israeli settlers.
