An Israeli soldier has been caught on video shooting a wounded Palestinian in the head in the West Bank city of al-Khalil (Hebron) after he was injured over an alleged stabbing attack.
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On Thursday, the human rights group, B'tselem, released the graphic footage taken by one of its members after two Palestinian youths were shot over allegedly stabbing an Israeli soldier earlier in the day.
In the video, the wounded Palestinian can be seen lying on the ground after being initially shot by Israeli forces.
After about a minute, one of the Israeli troops raises his gun and shoots the man in the head, causing a surge of blood from the wound, which then stains the surrounding pavement.
“I heard gunshots, went outside my house to check what it was, and saw several Israeli soldiers yelling and two youths on the ground. A soldier approached one of the youths that was moving while yelling and opened fire at him from zero range,†a local witness was quoted by the Ma’an news agency as saying.
The second Palestinian succumbed to his wounds after being denied medical aid by the Israeli soldiers. The wounded Israeli was transferred to a hospital in al-Quds (Jerusalem) with minor stab wounds in the shoulder and hand.
Israel claims to have detained the soldier and launched an investigation into the incident.
In response to the Tel Aviv regime's latest atrocity, Amnesty International’s Middle East and North Africa director, Philip Luther, said the shooting could easily be deemed as a war crime.
"The shooting of a wounded and incapacitated person, even if they have been involved in an attack, has absolutely no justification and must be prosecuted as a potential war crime," he said, adding, "Israeli forces have a long history of carrying out unlawful killings – including extrajudicial executions – in the occupied Palestinian Territories with impunity.â€
Palestinian Health Minister Jawad Awwad also referred to the incident as a "war crime," noting that even before to the shooting, medics were not treating the gravely injured man.
Al-Khalil , the largest West Bank city, has witnessed escalated tensions between some 200,000 Palestinians and several hundred Israelis living in illegal settlements under heavy military guard.
Tensions have heightened in the occupied territories since August 2015, when Israel imposed restrictions on the entry of Palestinian worshipers into the al-Aqsa Mosque compound in East al-Quds.
Al-Aqsa Mosque is the third holiest site in Islam after Masjid al-Haram in Mecca and Masjid al-Nabawi in Medina.
At least 208 Palestinians, including children and women, have lost their lives at the hands of Israeli forces since the beginning of last October.
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