Palestinian teenager fatally shot during clashes with Israeli army

Palestinian officials say 13-year-old died in hospital after being shot in the stomach during anti-settlement protest

A Palestinian teenager was killed on Friday in clashes with the Israeli army on the sidelines of a protest in the occupied West Bank, the Palestinian health ministry said.

Ali Ayman Abu-Aliya, 13, "succumbed to his wounds after he was shot with live rounds in the stomach" during clashes north of Ramallah, the ministry said.

The youth was hit during a demonstration in the village of Mughayir and was transported in critical condition to a hospital in Ramallah, where he died, it said.

The Israeli army denied using live fire. "The reports of live-fire use during the riot are not true, and claims about a number of rioters injured and one killed are known," a spokeswoman said.

UN Middle East envoy Nickolay Mladenov said in a tweet he was "appalled by the killing".

"Israel must swiftly and independently investigate this shocking and unacceptable incident," he said.

Appalled by the killing of a 15 year old #Palestinian boy, Ali Abu Alaya, near #Ramallah today. #Israel must swiftly and independtly investigate this shocking and unacceptable incident. Children enjoy special protection under international law and must be protected from violence.

— Nickolay E. MLADENOV (@nmladenov) December 4, 2020

The Palestinian foreign ministry said it would prosecute Israel at the International Criminal Court over the shooting "to ultimately hold Israeli war criminals to account", the official Palestinian news agency Wafa reported.

The Palestinian Authority condemned "the cold-blooded murder" describing it in a statement as "the latest episode in Israel's crimes against the Palestinian people".

Mughayir mayor Amin Abu Aliya, quoted by Wafa, said the Israeli army had "violently dispersed" the protest against the establishment of an Israeli settlement in the area.

Four other people were wounded by Israeli army fire, Wafa reported.

The Israeli army spokeswoman said the protesters had thrown rocks at security forces.

"Rioters attempted to roll boulders and burning tyres from ridges above the Allon road, endangering the lives of civilians on the route," she said.

"Security forces prevented the rioters from blocking the road and responded with riot dispersal means."

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The Palestinian village of Mughayir is located near several Israeli settlements and has been the site of clashes between Palestinians and Israeli settlers in the past. More than 450,000 Israelis live in settlements in the territory, home to more than 2.8 million Palestinians.

Mughayir is also near the Ras Al Teen area, where Israel has threatened to demolish a school, a move condemned in early November by the European Union, which co-funded its construction.

Palestinians want to establish a state in the West Bank, east Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip, territories Israel captured in the 1967 Middle East war.

The Palestinians, who have limited self-rule in the West Bank, say Israel's settlements there will deny them a viable state and like many countries see the enclaves as an obstacle to peace and as illegal under international law.