Palestinian teenager killed in Israeli military raid in occupied West Bank

A new drama in the Middle East. A Palestinian teenager was killed Monday, April 10, during an Israeli military operation in the occupied West Bank.

The military said in a brief statement that “Security forces were carrying out an operation in Aqabat Jaber”, a refugee camp located near Jericho in the occupied West Bank, without immediately giving further details. The Palestinian ministry later announced the death of 15-year-old Mohamed Fayez Balhan. “killed by live ammunition of the occupation” after being shot in the head and chest, according to a statement. This operation comes the day after the funeral of two young Israeli women murdered on Friday in a Palestinian attack in the Jericho area.

Tensions for several days

Security tension has been on the rise since the brutal irruption on Wednesday of Israeli forces in the Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem, the third holiest site in Islam. This intervention sparked a series of international condemnations.

Israel claims that the security forces were “forced to act to restore order” in the face of “extremists” barricaded in the mosque with rocks and firework flares which were used against the police during their assault. The next day, around 30 rockets were fired from Lebanon into Israel, injuring one person and causing material damage. The Israeli army retaliated by carrying out strikes in Gaza and southern Lebanon.