Israeli forces shoot dead two boys, aged 13 and 15, in Gaza

Oct. 10, 2015 5:32 P.M. (Updated: Oct. 11, 2015 12:00 A.M.)

A Palestinian protester, looks on during clashes with Israeli forces near the border fence between Israel and the Gaza Strip on October 9, 2015. (AFP/Mohammed Abed/File)

GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Israeli forces on Saturday shot and killed two Palestinian boys, aged 13 and 15, at a demonstration in the southern Gaza Strip.

The Palestinian Ministry of Health said that Marwan Barbakh, 13, and Khalil Othman, 15, were shot dead during the protest to the east of Khan Younis.

Medics initially reported that Barbakh was 12 years old.

At least 15 others were injured during the protest, the ministry said, although it did not provide further details.

The Palestinian Red Crescent later said that its ambulance crews had treated seven Palestinians shot with live rounds across the Gaza Strip, in addition to 21 who suffered excessive tear gas inhalation.

An Israeli army spokeswoman had no immediate comment.

Earlier Saturday, Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri condemned the international community for "remain(ing) silent about Israeli war crimes."

He accused Israel of committing war crimes against the Palestinian people "through the execution of young Palestinian men and women at the scene of action," noting in particular the shooting of Palestinians following alleged stabbing attacks.

The two boys' deaths come after seven Palestinians were killed when Israeli snipers opened fire on demonstrations near Gaza's border fence on Friday, also east of Khan Younis.

According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, Israeli forces injured 145 other Palestinians by live fire or rubber-coated steel bullets during the protests.

The two boys' deaths brings the total number of Palestinians killed by Israel's army to 20 since fierce clashes swept the occupied Palestinian territory on Oct. 1, with around 1,000 injured with live and rubber-coated steel bullets in the same period.

Four Israelis have also been killed, two of whom were settlers.

The Israeli army has come under repeated criticism over its violence toward children.

Defense for Children-Palestine said in a report last month that Israeli forces and Jewish extremists had killed at least 1,991 children since 2000.

Among those, 535 children were killed directly by Israeli attacks during the 2014 offensive on Gaza, nearly 70 percent of whom were under the age of 12.

A further 3,306 children were injured during the war, including more than 1,000 who suffered permanent disability, the report said.

Following the conflict, the UN said: "There is not a single child who has not been adversely affected by the recent conflict in Gaza, where children suffer from bed-wetting, difficulties in sleeping, nightmares, a loss of appetite, and display more aggressive behavior at school."

Gaza demo death toll rises as 7th dies from injuries

Oct. 10, 2015 9:38 A.M. (Updated: Oct. 10, 2015 5:33 P.M.)

Palestinian men carry a man wounded during clashes with Israeli security forces, outside a hospital in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, on Oct. 9, 2015. (AFP)

GAZA CITY (Ma’an) – Twenty-two year old Jihad Salim al-Ubeid died Saturday morning from wounds sustained after being shot by Israeli snipers during a demonstration Friday, Gaza's ministry of health said.

The young man's death brings the total killed by Israeli forces during demonstrations in Gaza on Friday to seven. The demonstrations were held near the border fence with Israel east of Gaza City and near Khan Younis.

A spokesman for Gaza's ministry of health, Ashraf al-Qidra, confirmed to Ma'an that al-Ubeid, from the Gaza city of Deir al-Balah, succumbed to his wounds after being shot and critically injured when Israeli forces opened fire at Palestinians gathered around 100 meters from the border fence.

On Friday, Shadi Hussam Dawla, 20, Ahmad al-Harbawi, 20, and Abed al-Wahidi, 20, were shot and killed east of the al-Shujaiyeh neighborhood.Muhammad al-Raqeb, 15, and Ziad Nabil Sharaf, 20, were killed after being shot by Israeli forces near Khan Younis while Adnan Moussa Abu Elayyan, 22, was shot in the head and killed in the same area.

One hundred and forty-five other Palestinians were injured by live fire or rubber-coated steel bullets during the Gaza demonstrations, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.An Israeli army spokesperson told Ma'an at the time that 200 Palestinians approached the security fence and hurled rocks and rolled burning tires at Israeli forces.

Israeli forces responded with live fire towards the "main instigators," she said, confirming five direct hits.Al-Ubeid's death comes as tensions continue to rise across Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories following a series of stabbing attacks by both Israelis and Palestinians, violent attacks by Israeli settlers on Palestinians, and increased restrictions on Palestinians around the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Old City.

Fifteen Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces and around 1,000 injured with live and rubber-coated steel bullets in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip since Oct. 1.Nine of those killed have been shot dead during demonstrations and clashes.Four Israelis have been killed during the same time period, two of whom were Israeli settlers.

3 Palestinians killed as Israeli forces open fire at Gaza demo

Israeli soldiers on the Israeli side of the border with the Gaza Strip. (AFP/File Menahem Kahana)

GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Three Palestinians were killed and 19 others injured as Israeli military forces opened fire at a demonstration by the border fence east of Gaza City, medics said.

Medical sources told Ma'an that Ahmad al-Harbawi, Abed al-Wahidi, and Hussam Dawla were shot and killed during the clashes east of the al-Shujaiyeh neighborhood east of Gaza City.

At least 19 other Palestinians were injured.

An Israeli army spokesperson told Ma'an that 200 Palestinians approached the security fence and hurled rocks and rolled burning tires at Israeli forces.

Israeli forces responded with live fire towards the "main instigators," she said, confirming five direct hits.

The deaths in Gaza come amid renewed violence in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem on Friday.

In the Israeli city of Dimona, an Israeli teenager stabbed four Palestinian Bedouins who worked for the local municipality, seriously injuring two.

A Palestinian was shot and killed in the illegal settlement of Kiryat Arba after attempting to stab an Israeli border officer, police said, while a Palestinian woman was also shot in Afula after allegedly attempting to stab an Israeli security guard.

Tensions had been mounting steadily for weeks across the occupied Palestinian territory due to Israeli restrictions on Palestinians seeking to enter the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in East Jerusalem.

At least 900 Palestinians have been injured in seven consecutive days of demonstrations and clashes in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, at least 60 with live fire, medics say.