Palestinian teenage driver shot dead at West Bank checkpoint

Israeli defence ministry says soldiers opened fire after the teenager crashed into the checkpoint

Israeli forces shot Mohammad Younes on December 6, 2021 after he allegedly attempted to run over a soldier at a military checkpoint checkpoint. Photo: @WAFANewEnglish via Twitter

Israeli soldiers shot dead a Palestinian teenager who rammed a car into a military checkpoint in the occupied West Bank on Monday.

Israel's defence ministry said an Israeli guard was seriously injured in the alleged attack.

The incident occurred at a roadblock between Israel and the occupied West Bank near the Palestinian city of Tulkarm.

“At 1.20am, a 16-year-old terrorist rammed his car into a checkpoint and seriously injured one of the security guards,” the Israeli defence ministry said in a statement.

Other guards at the scene then quickly opened fire, killing the teenager, it said. The injured guard was taken to hospital and was expected to survive.

The Palestinian news agency Wafa identified the teenager as Mohammad Nidal Younes, a 15-year-old resident of Nablus city.

The official Palestinian news agency Wafa identified the teenager killed as 15-year-old Mohammad Younes, from the city of Nablus. Photo: @WAFANewEnglish via Twitter

Palestinian prime minister Mohammad Shtayyeh accused Israel of “cold-blooded murder”, during a cabinet meeting in the West Bank city of Ramallah.

The incident came two days after Israeli police shot dead a Palestinian in East Jerusalem after he stabbed an Israeli man and then tried to attack a Border Police officer.

A widely circulated video from a bystander appeared to show an officer from Israel’s paramilitary Border Police shooting the attacker when he was already lying on the ground.

Another video appeared to show police with guns drawn preventing medics from reaching him, prompting calls for an investigation into a possible excessive use of force.

The Israeli Justice Ministry’s police investigations unit said on Sunday that the officers were questioned shortly after the incident and released without conditions.

The incident took place near Damascus Gate, just outside Jerusalem’s Old City — a tense and crowded area that is often the scene of demonstrations and clashes.

Palestinians and Israeli rights groups say the security forces sometimes use excessive force in response to attacks, killing suspected assailants who could have been arrested or who posed no immediate threat.

Rights groups also say Israel rarely holds members of its security forces accountable for the deadly shootings of Palestinians. Investigations often end with no charges or lenient sentences, and in many cases witnesses are not summoned for questioning.

With reporting from agencies