Hundreds mourn Palestinian boy killed by Israeli forces as both sides report violence across the West Bank

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Hundreds of people have turned out for the funeral of a 14-year-old Palestinian boy shot dead by Israeli soldiers in the West Bank village of Husan.

The death of Qusai Hamamrah marked the second fatal shooting by Israeli forces in the village in five days and came amid a series of violent incidents and clashes across the territory overnight.
Wrapped in the Palestinian flag, the boy’s body was carried through the village by men hailing him as a martyr. His mother told CNN she had been worried after warning Qusai not to go out after the family finished iftar — the meal that breaks the daily fast during Ramadan.

“Right after he went out, I got the news that he had been killed,” Umm Mohammed said. “He was such a kind-hearted boy, very caring.”

Israel’s army said soldiers had fired at him after he threw a Molotov cocktail at them.
“IDF soldiers used live ammunition in order to stop the immediate threat, in accordance with the open fire regulations. A hit was identified. No IDF injuries were reported,” the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said in a statement.

An eyewitness told CNN that soldiers were shooting at someone else preparing firebombs and that Qusai had been seeking shelter from the bullets when he was hit. Ayman Hamamrah showed CNN holes in the wall of his house he said were caused by the Israeli soldiers’ live fire.

Just meters away from the house stood several concrete blocks — in front of which 47-year-old Ghada Sabateen was shot by soldiers on Saturday. The army said troops fired at her legs after she failed to heed calls and warning shots to stop at the pop-up checkpoint. The Palestinian health ministry said she died from loss of blood.

Dozens of soldiers and Israeli border police were present in the area again on Thursday, amid fears the funeral could trigger further unrest in the village, which lies just a few kilometers west of Bethlehem.

Source: https://edition.cnn.com/2022/04/14/middleeast