The Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the occupied territories B’Tselem gathered fresh affidavits about the use of live fire by the Israeli army against Palestinian children who clearly posed no threat to the lives or bodily integrity of the soldiers.

 B’Tselem said that using live fire in such circumstances - against young children who clearly posed no threat to the lives or bodily integrity of the soldiers, from a distance - is illegal and immoral.

The human rights monitor added that the incident is yet another example of the Israeli army’s trigger-happy policy, backed up and bolstered by the military law enforcement system, which is making sure, again, that no one gets prosecuted for the illegal act.

B’Tselem said that on Sunday, 17 November 2019, at around 1:00 P.M., when the boys’ school at the entrance to al-Jalazun Refugee Camp, north of Ramallah, was out for the day, several dozen Palestinian children and teens threw stones at about five Israeli soldiers who were standing east of the school, near the settlement of Beit El. The soldiers fired tear gas canisters and rubber-coated metal bullets at the boys and threw stun grenades at them.

About 30 minutes later, the soldiers started advancing toward the refugee camp, More soldiers arrived in a military jeep, with at least one armed person in civilian clothing. They started firing live rounds toward the fleeing children and teens, in addition to the “rubber” bullets and tear gas canisters.

 B'Tselem field researcher Iyad Hadad collected testimonies from the two children who were hurt in the incident, as well as from other witnesses. Rami Abu Nasrah, a 13-year-old seventh-grader, related how he was injured in his arm: “After about half an hour of clashes, I saw the protesters running towards the camp. The soldiers got really close to the school, and I ran away with the kids who had been watching the clashes with me. My friend Amir Zbeideh, 11, was with me. We got about 150 meters away, to the area where Mahmoud Nakhleh was killed a year ago. We hid behind the wall of a building, along with three or four other kids I don’t know. But the wall was too low and barely hid us.”

 “The soldiers, some of whom were in civilian clothes, fired live rounds, rubber bullets and tear gas canisters. I heard two or three live shots, one after the other…. As soon as I started running, I heard live fire and maybe “rubber” bullets, too. My right arm started bleeding a lot and I realized I’d been hit. My arm was limp and felt broken. I ran towards the road and shouted: ‘I’ve been hit, I’ve been hit.’

Amir Zbeideh, an 11-year-old sixth-grader, also told B’Tselem’s field researcher that as soon as he started running he felt something hit his stomach. “I put my hand where I was hurt, and then another bullet hit my right index finger and almost cut it right off. The bullet penetrated my hand, and a piece of shrapnel hit my chest. Later, I found out it got under my skin. I was really scared and started shouting: ‘I’ve been hurt. I’ve been hurt’, and I ran quickly toward the camp.”

 In a testimony to B’Tselem’s field researcher, Islam Ibrahim, 25, who works as a traveling clothes’ salesman, said: “The soldiers, who were a few meters away from us, fired directly at the kids who were running to the camp. The shooting lasted for what felt like several minutes, and then they retreated. I later found out that two kids had been hit.”

According to the report, at the hospital, Rami Abu Nasrah was diagnosed with an open fracture in the arm and underwent surgery to stabilize the bone. Amir Zbeideh also had surgery to reattach his right index finger and remove shrapnel from his chest. Both were released from hospital four days later, on 20 November 2019.

Rami Abu Nasrah related: “I don’t know if I’ll be able to go back to school regularly, especially because I write with my right hand. It’s too early to know the damage, but I was told that even if there aren’t any complications, my arm will be deformed and I’ll be handicapped. There’s no way of knowing how it will affect me in the future.”

The Israeli military has denied live fire was used in similar cases in the past, but once again, the findings of B'Tselem's investigation contradict these claims: Soldiers and at least one armed individual in civilian clothes fired live rounds at children and teens, some of whom had thrown stones at the soldiers earlier, injuring two - Rami Abu Nasrah and Amir Zbeideh, from a distance of about 150 meters.

 B’Tselem said that using live fire in such circumstances - against young children who clearly posed no threat to the lives or bodily integrity of the soldiers, from a distance - is illegal and immoral.

The human rights monitor added that the incident is yet another example of the Israeli army’s trigger-happy policy, backed up and bolstered by the military law enforcement system, which is making sure, again, that no one gets prosecuted for the illegal act.