28-03-2024 11:20 PM Jerusalem Timing

Israeli Occupation Troops Shoot Dead Palestinian at West Bank Funeral

Israeli Occupation Troops Shoot Dead Palestinian at West Bank Funeral

Israeli occupation troops shot dead a Palestinian man in the West Bank on Friday when they opened fire during the funeral of a Palestinian prisoner who was recently released from a Zionist jail, medics said.

Israeli soldiersIsraeli occupation troops shot dead a Palestinian man in the West Bank on Friday when they opened fire during the funeral of a Palestinian prisoner who was recently released from a Zionist jail, medics said.

Two other Palestinians were wounded when Israeli occupation troops opened fire in face of protests that erupted in Hebron after the burial of the man, who had died shortly after leaving prison, the medics said.

The 30-year-old victim, Ziad Awad, was shot in the back, they said.

The Palestinian medics identified the man who was buried as a relative, Jaafar Awad, who fell ill before he was released from jail.

Angry protests erupted during his funeral in the southern West Bank, with mourners accusing 'Israel' of responsibility for his death.

Thousands of people marched in the funeral procession in the village of Beit Ummar, and some pelted troops deployed nearby with stones, witnesses said.

Israeli soldiers retaliated by firing tear gas and rubber bullets before resorting to live rounds, the witnesses added.

The head of a Palestinian Authority body in charge of prisoner affairs, Issa Qaraqe, issued a statement noting Jaafar Awad had died of "medical negligence" at the hands of Israeli prison authorities.

"Israel alone is responsible for his death," Qaraqe said in the statement, and called for an international probe.

Jaafar's father, Ibrahim Awad, told AFP before his son's death that Israeli prison authorities had given the 23-year-old man "an injection that made him ill and totally weakened him."

'Israel' captured Jaafar Ibrahim over participating in the Palestinian resistance activities.