12-year-old Palestinian boy dies of gunshot wound weeks after army raid
Mahmoud Samoudi was shot in abdomen during operation in Jenin that saw four gunmen killed
RAMALLAH — A 12-year-old Palestinian boy died Monday after being shot and wounded by Israeli soldiers late last month during a raid in Jenin in the West Bank, the Palestinian Health Ministry said.
Mahmoud Samoudi was shot in the abdomen on September 28, in an operation that Israeli security forces said targeted terror operatives planning attacks. Four gunmen were killed during the raid.
Clashes developed in the city and dozens of Palestinians were reported injured.
The Israeli army did not immediately respond to a request for comment about Monday’s death.
Israel has been carrying out nightly arrest raids across the West Bank since a spate of terror attacks against Israelis in the spring killed 19 people. The army said it had traced some of the perpetrators of those attacks back to Jenin.
Israeli fire has killed more than 100 Palestinians during that time, making it the deadliest year in the territory since 2015. The Israeli military says the vast majority of those killed were members of terror groups or rioters who endangered the soldiers.
The Ministry of Health: Child Mahmoud Samoudi (12 years old), succumbed to severe wounds he sustained a few days ago, in the abdomen, in #Jenin. pic.twitter.com/jCDlzZIM9x
— The Democratic Reformists within Fateh Movement (@the_reformists) October 10, 2022
But several civilians have also been killed during Israel’s months-long operation, including a veteran journalist and a lawyer who apparently drove unwittingly into a battle zone. Local youths who took to the streets to clash with troops have also been killed.
Israel says the arrest raids are meant to dismantle terror networks. The Palestinians say the operations are aimed at strengthening Israel’s 55-year military occupation of territories they want for an independent state.
