A Palestinian man was shot dead by an Israeli during a settler attack on a village in the occupied West Bank on Wednesday evening. A relative said Alaa Khalid Subeih, 28, was killed as he tried to defend a greenhouse from the settlers in Tayasir in the northern West Bank. A senior UN official also said he was killed by a settler.
The Israeli military stated he was shot by an off-duty soldier and accused him of throwing stones. Tayasir has been a focus of recent violence by settlers, and Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank are deemed illegal under international law.
The killing comes as ex-security chiefs warned that 'government sponsored Jewish terrorism' was escalating in the West Bank while the Israeli government reportedly approved dozens more settlements.
Tayasir is intended to be under the security control of the Palestinian Authority. Prior incidents of violence included a CNN crew being detained by Israeli soldiers while covering tensions in the area.
Saeb Subeih, Alaa's cousin, described him as 'one of the finest young men in the village' and accused the settlers of acting under 'army protection'. He stated that Alaa was 'executed' while defending his greenhouse and noted that the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) retained Alaa's body, which they have yet to return to his family, deepening their grief.
Ajith Sunghay from the UN Human Rights Office confirmed accounts of the violence, emphasizing that Israel's government was providing 'complete impunity for settlers'. The situation has led to a noted uptick in settler violence against Palestinians, recorded in the UN's statistics this year.
Israeli officials maintain that the incident is under review. However, they have labeled Alaa a 'terrorist' in some communications, leading to further conflicting narratives surrounding the event. As tensions rise, it remains evident that violence in Tayasir and similar areas endangers both Palestinian and Israeli communities alike.
The Israeli military stated he was shot by an off-duty soldier and accused him of throwing stones. Tayasir has been a focus of recent violence by settlers, and Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank are deemed illegal under international law.
The killing comes as ex-security chiefs warned that 'government sponsored Jewish terrorism' was escalating in the West Bank while the Israeli government reportedly approved dozens more settlements.
Tayasir is intended to be under the security control of the Palestinian Authority. Prior incidents of violence included a CNN crew being detained by Israeli soldiers while covering tensions in the area.
Saeb Subeih, Alaa's cousin, described him as 'one of the finest young men in the village' and accused the settlers of acting under 'army protection'. He stated that Alaa was 'executed' while defending his greenhouse and noted that the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) retained Alaa's body, which they have yet to return to his family, deepening their grief.
Ajith Sunghay from the UN Human Rights Office confirmed accounts of the violence, emphasizing that Israel's government was providing 'complete impunity for settlers'. The situation has led to a noted uptick in settler violence against Palestinians, recorded in the UN's statistics this year.
Israeli officials maintain that the incident is under review. However, they have labeled Alaa a 'terrorist' in some communications, leading to further conflicting narratives surrounding the event. As tensions rise, it remains evident that violence in Tayasir and similar areas endangers both Palestinian and Israeli communities alike.
