Israeli forces opened fire on a vehicle carrying a family in a village under the jurisdiction of the Palestinian Authority (PA) in the West Bank, killing a 7-month-old infant.
According to foreign media reports and an Israeli military statement Friday, the incident occurred the previous evening in the Tel Rumeida area south of Hebron. The Israeli military said a soldier fired a single shot after determining that a vehicle was accelerating toward troops during an operation. The shooting wounded members of a Palestinian family in the car, who were taken to a hospital.
The victim was identified as 7-month-old Samah Fadi Abu Haikal. The Palestinian Health Ministry announced that the infant died and that the parents suffered serious to minor injuries. The Palestinian news agency WAFA reported that the infant was transferred in critical condition and ultimately died.
The grandmother, who was in the car at the time, stated that she spotted Israeli military vehicles and soldiers in the distance and stopped the car, and that when she heard gunshots shortly afterward, she thought they were warning shots. "We were on our way back to our home in Hebron from my son's house in Bethlehem, and it happened near a checkpoint," she said, claiming that the car had been stopped and there was no threat or justifiable reason to open fire.
As controversy grew, the Israeli military said its initial investigation confirmed that the wounded were civilians unrelated to the operation, and expressed deep condolences for the innocent victims. The military added that it had launched an investigation into the circumstances of the incident and would submit the results to the relevant authorities.
Meanwhile, Tel Rumeida, where the incident took place, is an area where Israeli settlers live intermingled with numerous Palestinian residents under heavily armed military protection, and has been regarded as one of the most sensitive flashpoints for conflict in the West Bank.
