Israeli Forces Kill Palestinian, Injure 4 in West Bank

Facts

• Israeli troops shot and killed a Palestinian man on Thursday as they escorted Israeli worshippers, including the Israeli police chief and the head of the local Jewish settler council, to a site known as the biblical Joseph’s Tomb in the northern West Bank city of Nablus.¹
• Witnesses at the scene reported that the army was escorting the group when dozens of Palestinians set fire to tires and threw explosive devices and stones at nearby soldiers as they approached the site. Joseph’s Tomb is believed to be the last resting place of the biblical figure.²
• The Palestinian Wafa news agency identified the man who was killed as 19-year-old Bader al-Masri. The Israeli military said that it used live fire and riot dispersal means to quell the demonstrators, adding that multiple suspects were struck.³
• The Palestinian health ministry and the Red Crescent reported four people injured, two of whom are in serious condition. A local affiliate of Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) said that its members were “fighting the occupation forces and groups of settlers who had stormed the area of Joseph’s Tomb.'⁴
• The northern West Bank has become a flashpoint of violence in the last year. The Israeli army accuses militant groups of stationing fighters in the Jenin camp, and many militants live in the camp with their families.⁵
• The situation in Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza has deteriorated in the last year as Israel — following a spree of Palestinian attacks last spring — has launched regular raids in the area. Over 150 Palestinians have been killed this year in the West Bank, and Palestinian attacks targeting Israelis have killed at least 26 people.¹

Sources: ¹Associated Press, ²VOA, ³The Times of Israel, ⁴Al Jazeera and ⁵Reuters.

Narratives

• Pro-Israel narrative, as provided by Jerusalem Post. Palestinian terrorists attacked Jewish worshippers as they simply sought to pray at Joseph's Tomb. The Israeli military did everything it could to disperse the rioters and PIJ terrorists without causing a loss of life, but they were forced to use live ammunition after being fired upon.
• Pro-Palestine narrative, as provided by Middle East Eye. Israeli incursions like this are only meant to provoke Palestinian residents who are growing increasingly frustrated with the daily brutality of the occupation under which they live. Israeli forces also targeted an ambulance in the area as paramedics tried to reach an infant. The horrors of this occupation are showcased on a near-daily basis.