A Palestinian man was shot during the weekly demonstration in Nabi Salih,
northwest of Ramallah, on Friday afternoon.
The bullet passed through the
activist’s hand before hitting him in the hip, a spokeswoman for the Popular
Struggle Coordination Committee said.
The man was undergoing surgery at a
hospital in Ramallah, where PSCC spokeswoman Abir Kopty said the damage to his
hand appeared serious.
The IDF Spokesman’s Office confirmed that live
fire was used at the demonstration, but said initial checks indicated the shots
were fired into the air. According to the army spokesman, Palestinians
surrounded several soldiers, who felt “an imminent threat to their lives.” The
soldiers then fired live ammunition into the air along with riot dispersal
measures.
Kopty denied that assertion, however, citing several
witnesses.
An IDF crowd dispersal projectile struck another protester in
the head, and the protester was also being treated at the Ramallah hospital,
Kopty said.
The IDF said the incident was being reviewed, adding that
during the course of the demonstration “dozens of Palestinians hurled rocks at
IDF soldiers, who responded with riot dispersal measures.”
The IDF
Spokesman’s Office said it was unaware of any injuries sustained by security
forces.
Nabi Salih residents have staged demonstrations since 2009,
saying the nearby Neveh Tzuf (Halamish) settlement has taken over a village
spring.
The IDF says the protests at Nabi Salih are illegal.
On
December 11, 2011, a tear-gas canister fired from a range of several meters
struck 28-year-old Mustafa Tamimi in the head and killed him. A sequence of
still photos appeared to show the back door of an IDF armored jeep opening, and
a rifle being aimed at Tamimi and subsequently firing the canister toward
him.
On December 23, an army sharpshooter shot a protester in the leg
with a 0.22 caliber bullet. The IDF at the time said the man was targeted when
he was identified throwing stones at security forces.