JERUSALEM (AA): A Palestinian child has died after being shot by Israeli forces, according to local media.
The Palestinian Ministry of Health said in a statement Monday that Abd al-Rahman Mustafa, 13, died after being shot in the stomach.
According to the Palestinian Ma’an news agency, the boy was shot during overnight clashes between Palestinian youth and security forces in the Aida refugee camp, near the West Bank city of Bethlehem.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said they could not confirm the incident but would look into the reports.
According to Ma’an, there were clashes across East Jerusalem and the West Bank overnight Sunday, with Israeli security forces using both rubber-coated steel bullets and live fire.
Hamas confirmed through Twitter that their activist Huthayfa Suleiman, 18, died after being shot by the IDF in Tulkarem.
The Israeli military said they had clashed with up to 200 youth in Tulkarem, claiming they belonged to Hamas.
“They [army] used riot dispersal means. They fired rounds towards three rioters that were throwing firebombs and confirmed hits,” said an Israel Defense Forces spokesperson.
Israel has responded to the killing of four Israelis since Thursday with heavy security measures, including by banning Palestinians from entering the historic Old City unless they live there and by continuing to restrict entry to the revered Al-Aqsa Mosque.
The measures have however further angered Palestinians, already frustrated by restrictions and the deaths of several Palestinians shot by security forces.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Nethanyahu said Sunday that new harsher security measures will involve destroying homes of Palestinians involved in attacks, expanding the use of administrative detentions and banning individuals from Al-Aqsa Mosque.
