‘Palestinian teen was shot dead after throwing rocks’

Police forces say they don’t know identity of teen from West Bank village of Iraq Burin's killer; Palestinians blame settlers; settlers demand apology.

By TOVAH LAZAROFF, YAAKOV LAPPIN
The Judea and Samaria Police said late Thursday night that a Palestinian teen from the West Bank village of Iraq Burin was killed after he threatened a pedestrian with a rock.
The police said that they did not know the identity of the pedestrian, but that they were exploring the possibility that he was Israeli, and maybe a settler.
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“Until we identify him, we won’t be able to say for certain,” the police said.
The man was walking in the area of Iraq Burin when he was surrounded by a group of Palestinians who began throwing rocks at him, according to an initial police investigation.
One of the Palestinians, a teenager, then moved toward him with a rock in hand, police reported.
The man tried to force the Palestinian teenager to step back, the police said. When that failed the man took out a gun and shot at the teen.
The police cautioned that the investigation was ongoing.
Palestinians from Iraq Burin and the Popular Struggle Coordination Committee said that the teen, Oday Maher Hamza Qadous, 19, had been farming in the village fields when he was shot.
Qadous was taken to a hospital in Nablus, where he was pronounced dead, said committee spokesman Joseph Dana.
“I do not know whether there was a confrontation before, but the fact of the matter is that a settler killed a Palestinian,” alleged Dana.
The police statement reflects an initial investigation that is unsourced and often meaningless, particularly given the performance of the police in past investigations, said Dana.
He added that some Palestinians from the village had explained that the incident with the rock-throwing happened after Qadous was shot.
Dana said that he knew a bullet had been recovered from the body and that he hoped it would lead to the killer’s identity.
Settlers, in turn, put their faith in the police investigation and called on the Palestinians and the left-wing activists to apologize for their initial statements, which described a settler killing an innocent Palestinian.
They accused the activists and Palestinians of inciting against them.
Samaria Regional Council head Gershon Mesika said he was pleased that the police had uncovered what he said was the truth behind the lies that the Arabs had spread, the publication of which had harmed the Jewish population.