PHOTO: Overhead view of Jenin in Palestine’s West Bank


Ben Decker writes for EA:


Another Palestinian has been killed by the Israeli military in the latest spike in unrest in the West Bank.

Mohammed Alawneh, a 21-year-old resident of Birqin, west of Jenin, was slain on Wednesday amid protests and clashes near the entrance of the village. The unrest was reportedly sparked by an early-morning arrest raid carried out by the Israeli Defense Forces, who were met by residents with stones and Molotov cocktails. Israeli troops used tear-gas canisters and stun grenades as well as live rounds in the fight.

Israeli media said Alawneh was killed by a shot from a Ruger rifle, which are usually employed in dispersal operations because their ammunition is less powerful than standard military issue. However, at close quarters, the bullets can still be lethal.

Alawneh was reportedly hit in the chest at close-range and succumbed to his wounds shortly thereafter. He is the 16th Palestinian killed by Israeli security forces this year.

At least 20 Palestinians, including a journalist, were detained in overnight raids.

Since June, there have been a number of attacks in the West Bank, including a June 29 shooting at the Shvut Rahel settlement that killed one person, a June 26 stabbing at a checkpoint near Bethlehem with one fatality, and a June 19 attack which killed one Israeli near Dolev.

Arrest raids by the Israeli Defense Forces have increased in range and scale, in an attempt to deter the attacks. The highest-profile detention in recent months has been that of Palestinian Islamic Jihad leader Khader Adnan, who pursued a 56-day hunger strike earlier this summer.

So far, the response of the Israeli military has failed to quell the unrest, despite many Hamas and Islamic Jihad leaders distancing themselves from any violence.