Palestinian teen killed by Israel forces during home demolition

People carry the dead body of 19-year-old Yazan Abu Tabikh, who succumbed to his wounds after Israeli forces shot him in Jenin, West Bank (Issam Rimawi - Anadolu Agency)

Middle East Monitor  /  February 6, 2020

A 19 -year-old Palestinian was this morning shot dead by Israeli soldiers as they demolished a the home of a Palestinian family in the northern West Bank city of Jenin.

Yazan Munther Abu Tabikh, a student at the Palestinian Authority’s Istiqlal Military College, was shot dead, while five others were taken to hospital for treatment after being left in critical conditions by the occupation forces.

According to the International Middle East Media Centre (IMMC), the soldiers shot Yazan with two live rounds in the chest after opening fire using live and rubber bullets to disperse the young Palestinians protestors.

The fatal shooting caused life-threatening wounds before he was rushed to a hospital where he died from his injuries.

One of the wounded Palestinians is a police officer, identified as Lu’ay Ahmad Badwan, 25, from Azzoun town. He was shot in the upper body. The bullet struck his spine before he was rushed into surgery at the Al-Razi hospital, in Jenin city.

Protests erupted after 30 Israeli military vehicles, including bulldozers, invaded Jenin and demolished the home of a political prisoner, identified as Ahmad Abu Al-Qumba, reported IMMC.

Homeowner Jamal Qumba told WAFA that he received a notice from Israeli forces informing him of the plan to demolish his house. He appealed the decision through the Jerusalem Legal Aid and Human Rights Centre to the Israeli High Court, but was rejected.

It was the second time the army demolished the home, after the family rebuilt it following the first demolition in 2018. A strike has been called for by Palestinian groups to mourn the killing of Abu Tabikh and the demolition of the house.

Demonstrations have intensified in the last week since US President Trump revealed his so-called “peace plan” for the Middle East, which has been rejected by all Palestinian parties.

The clashes in Jenin also came a day after Israeli troops shot dead a 17-year-old Palestinian in the occupied West Bank city of Hebron.