Israeli forces have fatally shot a Palestinian teenager during a raid on the al-Arroub refugee camp, near the occupied West Bank city of al-Khalil, also known as Hebron.
According to Palestinian media, 16-year-old Milad Munther al-Ra'i was killed after Israeli soldiers fired live ammunition and toxic tear gas canisters at a group of Palestinian youths and children who confronted them during the raid into the camp on Saturday.
Al-Ra'i, who was in a critical condition, was taken to hospital for medical treatment where he was pronounced dead about an hour later.
كان حلم الفتى ميلاد الراعي أن يكون لاعب كرة قدم، وأن يزور ملعب مدريد ليشاهد مباراة هناك، لكن الاحتلال قتله مساء اليوم في مخيم العروب، وقتل أحلامه. pic.twitter.com/chwR27GBTm
— شبكة قدس الإخبارية (@qudsn) September 9, 2023
The Palestinian Red Crescent Society said the young boy was shot in the back and chest during Israeli forces’ raid on the camp.
A large number of Palestinians also suffered suffocation from gas inhalation due to the use of toxic tear gas by the regime's forces.
Israeli forces launch raids on various cities of the West Bank on an almost daily basis under the pretext of detaining what the regime calls “wanted” Palestinians. The raids usually lead to violent confrontations with residents.
More than 200 Palestinians have been killed this year in the occupied territories and Gaza. The majority of these fatalities have been recorded in the West Bank.
The figure makes 2023 the deadliest year for Palestinians in the West Bank since the United Nations began keeping track of fatalities in 2005.
Previously, 2022 was the deadliest year with 150 Palestinians killed, of whom 33 were minors, according to the United Nations.