Palestine: 11 injured by live fire as clashes break out in Qalandiya refugee camp
Local Editor
Ma’an Agency – Israeli forces on Wednesday raided Qalandiya refugee camp near the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah, injuring 11 Palestinians with live fire, residents and medics said.Residents told Ma’an that 16-year-old camp resident Faris Abu al-Esh was shot before being detained and his condition is not known. Israeli forces opened fire when clashes broke out during the raid with Palestinian residents who threw stones at the forces. The Palestinian Ministry of Health told Ma’an that the injured were transferred to the Palestinian Medical Complex in Ramallah. All Palestinians admitted were shot in their lower extremities during the clashes, medics said.
One resident sustained a serious injury and the remaining 10 were reported to be in stable condition. An Israeli army spokesperson told Ma’an that Israeli forces entered the camp in the early morning during “routine activity,” in order to “arrest suspects involved in illegal activity.” The spokesperson said that “rioters attacked the forces, throwing rocks and Molotov cocktails” when Israeli forces used “riot dispersal means,” opening fire towards the “main instigators.” The spokesperson confirmed several hits but was unable to specify the number of Palestinians arrested during the raid. Earlier this month, clashes broke out in the Qalandiya area following the funeral of Omar al-Faqeh, 23, who was shot dead by Israeli forces at Qalandiya checkpoint on Oct. 17 after reportedly stabbing and injuring an Israeli Border Police officer. Al-Faqeh is one of 79 Palestinians to be killed by Israeli forces since the beginning of October, many of whom were shot dead during alleged, attempted, and actual attacks on Israeli military and civilians.
Ten Israelis have died from attacks by individual Palestinians in the same time period. Israeli forces have clashed over the past month with residents of Qalandiya refugee camp during repeated raids. The raids come as least two homes in the tightly-packed camp are slated for demolition by Israeli authorities. An evacuation order was delivered last month to the family of Tareq al-Dweik, 22, who was detained on suspicion of stabbing four Israelis. Israeli authorities plan to seal the al-Dweik home, as well as demolish the home of Abd Muhammad Abu Shahin, who is believed to have led a military cell that carried out a shooting last Ramadan that killed an Israeli settler and injured another. The demolition orders were pushed last month following a move by Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu to legally expedite punitive demolitions of homes belonging to Palestinians suspected for carrying out attacks on Israelis. Palestinian gunmen inside of the camp — believed to be affiliated with Fatah’s Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades — opened fire on Israeli forces in at least two instances last month, preventing the forces from carrying out demolitions.
