Israeli authorities are considering the shooting death of two men believed to be attempting to surrender in the occupied West Bank by soldiers, an act the Palestinian Authority has described as a “full-scale war crime”.
The incident occurred Thursday during a large-scale “counterterrorism” operation by Israeli forces in the Palestinian city of Jenin in the West Bank. Palestinian authorities confirmed their deaths and identified the men as 26-year-old al-Muntasir Mahmoud Qasem Abdullah and 37-year-old Yousef Ali Youssef Asassa.
In a statement, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) said the two men were militants and engaged in a firefight with Israeli forces until they ran out of ammunition, before being surrounded and killed in what it described as a “field execution”.
The PA said the incident was a “clear violation of all international laws, treaties, norms and humanitarian values.”
On Saturday evening, Israel’s far-right Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gvir, who had said the border police had “acted exactly as expected,” promoted the force’s commander and doubled down on his support. In a video published on social media, Ben Gvir said: “This twisted procedure must end. When one of our fighters shoots and kills a terrorist, he is immediately taken in for questioning. This twisted procedure must end. This way of thinking must stop.”
Sharon Nahari, an attorney for the three Border Patrol agents involved, told CNN on Friday that her clients were being questioned by the State Attorney’s Office’s Internal Investigations Unit, which is investigating the case. The three were later released on bail.
Nahari said his clients genuinely believed their lives were in danger and that border police ordered the suspects to take off their clothes to ensure they were unarmed, but the suspects did not comply. The lawyer added, “The shooting was done simply to incapacitate them, and there was no intent to kill them.”
According to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), the two men were wanted by authorities on suspicion of terrorist activities.
The IDF said it was working with border police to arrest two members of a “terrorist organization operating in Jenin,” accusing them of throwing explosives and firing guns at security forces.
The Israel Defense Forces added that the “surrender procedure” lasted several hours and that the men left the building after a sabotage vehicle was used. “Shots were fired at the wanted persons after they exited the building,” the Israel Defense Forces said in a joint statement with Israeli police.
“The incident is currently under investigation by the on-scene commander and will be transferred for consideration by the relevant authorities,” the IDF said.
Video of the incident shared on social media showed two men emerging from the building with their hands raised above their heads in surrender. They are surrounded by people who appear to be Israeli soldiers.
Two people were then seen lying on the floor in front of the entrance to the building before multiple gunshots were heard. The body of at least one of the men could be seen lying on the ground, according to the video.
Israeli forces launched a major military operation in the West Bank on Wednesday, with Israeli forces searching “more than 220 locations,” interrogating dozens of people and arresting “several wanted persons.”
The U.N. human rights office said Friday it was “appalled by the brazen killing” and called the incident a “summary execution.”
“We can confirm that since October 7, 2023, through November 27 of this year, Israeli forces and settlers have killed 1,030 Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem,” spokesman Jeremy Lawrence said at a news conference in Geneva. “The victims included 223 children.”
This story has been updated with additional developments.
