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muhammad tamimi
Israeli Killing of West Bank Children Hits 'Unprecedented Levels' in 2023
UNICEF says this has been the deadliest year on record for Palestinian children in the illegally occupied Palestinian territory.
Dec 29, 2023
More Palestinian children were killed by Israeli forces in the illegally occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem in 2023 than in any previous recorded year, the United Nations Children's Fund announced on Thursday.
According to the agency, Israeli occupation forces have killed 124 Palestinian minors in the West Bank and East Jerusalem this year. That's nearly four times the previous record of 36 children killed there in 2022. UNICEF also said that at least 576 Palestinian children were wounded in the occupied territories this year.
"This year has been the deadliest year on record for children in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem," Adele Khodr, UNICEF's regional director for the Middle East and North Africa, said in a statement noting the "unprecedented levels" of child deaths.
The Palestinian Health Ministry said earlier this month that at least 505 Palestinians of all ages have been killed by Israeli soldiers and settlers in the West Bank and East Jerusalem this year, making 2023 the deadliest year on record in the occupied territories. Al Jazeera has published a list with their names, ages, and photos.
The youngest West Bank child killed in 2023 was Muhammad Tamimi, a 2-year-old toddler who was shot in the head by an Israeli soldier outside his family's home in Nabi Saleh village near Ramallah in June. As they so often do after killing Palestinians, Israeli officials initially denied shooting Tamimi and his civilian father, who was seriously wounded.
Eighty-three of this year's child victims were slain after the October 7 attacks on Israel led by Hamas militants.
"Children living in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, have been experiencing grinding violence for many years, yet the intensity of that violence has dramatically increased since the horrific attacks of October 7," Khodr said, also noting the six Israeli children killed by West Bank and East Jerusalem-based Palestinian militants in 2023.
"As the world watches on in horror at the situation in the Gaza Strip, children in the West Bank are experiencing a nightmare of their own," Khodr noted, referencing the genocidal assault on the besieged enclave in which at least 8,663 children are among the more than 21,500 people killed by Israeli bombs and bullets, according to Palestinian officials.
"Living with a near-constant feeling of fear and grief is, sadly, all too common for children affected," she said. "Many children report that fear has become a part of their daily life, with many scared even walking to school or playing outside due to the threat of shootings and other conflict-related violence."
Khodr continued:
Grave violations against children, in particular killing and maiming, are unacceptable. UNICEF urges all parties to abide by their obligations under international human rights law and to protect children from conflict-related violence and protect their most basic right simply to be alive. Children should never be the target of violence, no matter who or where they are. An end to recurring violence is the best way to ensure children can grow up in peace and safety.
"The suffering of children in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, must not fade into the background of the current conflict—it is part of it," she added.
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Palestinian Toddler Muhammad Tamimi Dies Days After Israeli Forces Shot Him in Head
"What accountability will there be for the Israeli soldier(s) who opened fire into a Palestinian community and shot a two-year-old in the head?" asked one journalist. "The track record isn't promising."
Jun 05, 2023
A two-and-a-half-year-old Palestinian boy shot in the head last week by Israeli forces—who initially denied shooting the toddler—succumbed to his wounds on Monday.
Muhammad Tamimi and his father, Haytham Tamimi, were in their parked car outside their home in Nabi Saleh village near Ramallah in the illegally occupied West Bank of Palestine last Thursday when they came under fire from Israeli troops.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said that a preliminary investigation found that two Palestinian resistance fighters fired on the illegal Israeli settlement of Halamish—located in the southwestern Samarian Hills north of Ramallah—around 7:30 pm and that IDF troops stationed nearby returned fire, hitting Muhammad Tamimi in the head and his father in the chest.
\u201cAs news was breaking of the father and son having been shot, a claim that Palestinian gunmen were to blame - rather than Israeli soldiers - was quickly shared by army sources, Israeli journalists, & other social media accounts.\u201d— Ben White (@Ben White) 1685781244
Israeli officials initially claimed the Tamimis were shot by "terrorists" before admitting the pair was likely hit by mistake, expressing "regret" over the incident, and stating that the shootings were "being investigated in depth," according to The Times of Israel.
"The question is," said British journalist and Palestinian rights advocate Ben White, "what accountability will there be for the Israeli soldier(s) who opened fire into a Palestinian community and shot a two-year-old in the head? The track record isn't promising."
About half an hour after the father and son were shot, an IDF jeep "stormed the village and started firing live bullets directly at the houses," according to the Palestinian-led International Solidarity Movement (ISM).
ISM said 17-year-old Wissam Tamimi, who was standing on the roof of his family's home, was struck in the head with a sponge-tipped round and suffered a fractured skull.
\u201cPhotojournalist Bilal Tamimi was directly shot at by Israeli forces during an incursion in Nabi Saleh last night, despite identifying himself as a journalist to the soldiers.\n\nThis happened following the shooting of a 2 year old toddler and his father by Israeli soldiers.\u201d— Jalal (@Jalal) 1685694273
ISM continued:
After that, three snipers positioned themselves on the roof of one of the shops opposite the citizens' homes and fired live bullets and sponge bombs at anyone who moved, whether inside the houses or on the rooftops. The journalist and volunteer at B'Tselem, Bilal Tamimi, who was wearing a press uniform, helmet, and shield, was wounded after a soldier fired a sponge bomb directly and from a close range which broke his wrist and required surgery for a platinum implant. The house of journalist Bilal Tamimi continued to be targeted with live bullets, gas canisters, and sponge bombs, as a result of which his mother, who had kidney failure, suffocated.
Palestinian medics took Haytham Tamimi to a hospital in Ramallah, while an Israeli military helicopter rushed the critically injured toddler to Sheba Medical Center in Ramat Gan, Israel. The child was placed on life support until he was pronounced dead on Monday morning.
\u201cPalestinians bid farewell to the child Mohammed Tamimi (2) who died today after Isr*eli forces shot him in the head with live ammunition with his father on June 1 in Nabi Saleh, northwest of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank. #FreePalestine\u201d— Sarah Hassan (@Sarah Hassan) 1685984917
On Friday, Israeli occupation forces returned to Nabi Saleh and forced many of the village's residents out of their homes, not allowing them to return until they withdrew at dawn on Saturday. At approximately 4:30 pm, Israeli troops shot Noura Tamimi in the stomach with a sponge-tipped round, causing severe convulsions that required hospitalization. Kafa Tamimi, who is seven months pregnant, choked on tear gas after Israeli troops fired a canister of the chemical agent through her window.
On Saturday night, occupation forces invaded the village yet again, storming homes, beating residents, and terrorizing the community.
"The incitement for this attack stems from the settlers' repeated attempts to intimidate the villagers, with the most recent incident occurring just last week," resident Manal Tamimi told ISM, referring to Jewish residents of the apartheid colony of Halamish, also known as Neve Tzuf.
"In light of these distressing events, we urgently call upon the international community to ensure the protection of this small village, with a population not exceeding 650 people," Tamimi added. "It is imperative that international humanitarian law and international treaties are upheld, and immediate action is taken to halt the repeated attacks by both the occupation forces and settlers. Over the past decade alone, these aggressions have tragically resulted in the martyrdom of five young individuals from the village."
For years, Nabi Saleh was the site of weekly Friday demonstrations against Israeli settler colonization, land theft, and seizure of the village's spring.
This year alone, around 150 Palestinians—both resistance fighters and civilians—have been killed by Israeli occupation forces and settlers. This figure includes 28 children. Palestinian militants, meanwhile, have killed about 20 Israelis so far this year.
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