Israeli forces kill two Palestinian teenagers in West Bank

RAMALLAH, Palestine (MNTV) — Israeli forces shot dead two Palestinian teenagers in the occupied West Bank after clashes erupted in the village of Al-Mughayyir, Palestinian officials said, in the latest deadly incident involving Israeli troops and settlers.

Omar Mohammad Naji Al-Nassan, 19, and Khalil Rasem Khalil Shahada, 16, were killed by Israeli army gunfire Wednesday night in Al-Mughayyir, northeast of Ramallah, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.

The killings followed an alleged attempt by Israeli settlers to take sheep from two Palestinian homes in the village, according to Amin Abu Alia, head of the Al-Mughayyir village council. He said Israeli forces subsequently surrounded the village and entered its center.

Abu Alia said Israeli soldiers positioned snipers inside buildings and opened live fire on Palestinian residents who resisted the settlers.

The Israeli military offered a sharply different account, saying its forces had secured the village entrance to facilitate the return of livestock it claimed belonged to Israeli civilians and had been found in the area.

The army said a “violent riot” erupted during its operation and alleged that what it described as terrorists threw stones and concrete blocks at Israeli forces. 

It said soldiers fired at individuals identified as key instigators because they posed a so-called threat, while adding that the conduct of the operation was being reviewed.

Palestinian officials disputed the Israeli characterization of the incident. The Palestinian Red Crescent said both teenagers suffered critical gunshot wounds during the clashes. Al-Nassan was shot in the neck while Shahada was struck in the back, according to the organization.

Both were transported to hospitals in Ramallah, where they were pronounced dead.

Footage from a Ramallah medical center showed mourners surrounding one of the bodies, which had been wrapped in a Palestinian flag. Relatives and residents later carried the remains from the hospital as mourners chanted for Palestinian freedom.

The killings underscore the increasingly lethal environment facing Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, where Israeli military raids and settler attacks have intensified since the outbreak of the Gaza genocide in October 2023.

Israeli settlers have increasingly carried out attacks against Palestinian communities, while Israel’s far-right government has accelerated settlement expansion and recognized previously unauthorized outposts. 

Settlements in the occupied West Bank are considered illegal under international law.

The violence has also drawn criticism from within Israel. Israeli military chief Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir has described recent settler attacks as morally and ethically unacceptable, while former Israeli officials have accused militant settlers of using violence to drive Palestinians from their homes.

The United Nations has separately warned that settlement expansion and the displacement of Palestinian communities could amount to a broader policy of forcible transfer.

At least 1,105 Palestinians, including militants and civilians, have been killed by Israeli soldiers or settlers in the West Bank since the Gaza genocide began, according to the latest tally based on Palestinian official figures.

The deaths of the two teenagers add to that toll and have further highlighted accusations that Israel’s military occupation and expanding settler movement are exposing Palestinian civilians to persistent violence with little accountability.