Palestinian killed by IDF during stone-throwing clashes

Asked for comment, the IDF said the incident was under examination.

By REUTERS, TOVAH LAZAROFF
A man holds a Palestinian flag stained with blood of a mortally wounded Palestinian during a protest against Israeli settlements, in Beit Dajan in the Israeli-occupied West Bank March 19, 2021. (photo credit: REUTERS/RANEEN SAWAFTA)
A man holds a Palestinian flag stained with blood of a mortally wounded Palestinian during a protest against Israeli settlements, in Beit Dajan in the Israeli-occupied West Bank March 19, 2021.
(photo credit: REUTERS/RANEEN SAWAFTA)
IDF soldiers shot dead a Palestinian on Friday during stone-throwing clashes in the West Bank, a Reuters witness said.
The man, initially identified as Sheikh Atef Yousef Hanaisheh, was shot in the head and taken to a hospital near the West Bank city of Nablus where he later died, the Palestinian health ministry said.
Hanaisheh, who is in his forties, was involved in a weekly protest against Israeli settlements in the village of Beit Dajan, near Nablus.
A group of Palestinians threw stones towards two IDF soldiers posted there, and the soldiers then opened fire, said the Reuters witness, a photographer.
A group of Palestinians carried the Hanaisheh from the scene. He was buried later in the day in Beit Dajan.
Asked for comment, the IDF said the incident was under examination.
An IDF spokesperson explained that a violet riot had broken out in that area, in which Palestinians threw stones at IDF troops. Soldiers had had responded with riot dispersal means, including firing in the air.
The Palestinians, who have limited self-rule in the West Bank, say Israel's settlements there will deny them a viable state. Most countries view the settlements as illegal under international law.
Israel disputes this, citing security needs as well as biblical and historical ties to the land. Israeli-Palestinian peace talks collapsed in 2014.