Funeral held for 4 Palestinians killed in al-Khalil

A mass Palestinian funeral ceremony for four youths killed by Israeli forces near the city of al-Khalil (Hebron) in the West Bank has turned into protests against the regime’s brutal crackdown on the residents of the occupied territories.

Relatives of the Palestinian victims gathered in the village of Sa’ir, near al-Khalil, to bury the four who were shot dead two days ago after Israeli forces accused them of carrying out stabbing attacks.

Three of the slain Palestinians, who were in their early 20s, were killed in Gush Etzion Junction in southern West Bank on Thursday. The fourth, a Palestinian young woman, was killed hours later, after she allegedly sought to stab forces at a checkpoint in the West Bank village of Beit Einun, located five kilometers (3.1 miles) northeast of al-Khalil.

During the funeral, Palestinian protesters shouted slogans against the Israelis and condemned the killing of the four youths. There were no immediate reports on any confrontation between the protesters and the Israeli forces.

Meanwhile, Israeli forces demolished on Saturday the home of a Palestinian young man, Mohanad Halabi, in Surda, a town near Ramallah.

Halabi was shot dead by Israeli forces in early October  after an alleged stabbing attack in the Old City of al-Quds (Jerusalem).

"Clashes erupted between youths [and Israeli forces]. My son and I were shot with rubber bullets. They prevented us from reaching the area [during demolishing process] they started from 1200 am and left on 0400 am (local time)," his uncle, Ramadan Halabi, said.

"I have never seen someone demolishing like this, may God curse them. But thank God, we are proud of Mohanad and what he did. It [the house] is not more valuable than him, Palestine, or other martyrs of Palestine."

Around 150 Palestinians have been killed in more than three months of violence in the occupied territories since early October.

Israelis have escalated targeting of Palestinians, accusing them of carrying out attacks against Israeli forces and settlers. Palestinians say the Tel Aviv regime is seeking to change the status quo of the al-Aqsa mosque, a highly revered place for the Muslims across the world.

Several Palestinians have also been killed in clashes during funerals over the past months.  

The increasing attacks by settlers on the Palestinians have also played a role in the fresh wave of violence in the occupied territories as Israelis frequently storm the houses and properties of people in various towns and villages of the occupied West Bank.

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