Palestinian woman allegedly killed by IDF gunfire while picking olives in West Bank; involved unit’s deputy commander suspended

The IDF says it has suspended a deputy commander in the 334th Battalion and has opened an investigation after troops allegedly shot dead a 59-year-old Palestinian woman who was picking olives near the security barrier in the Jenin area of the northern West Bank.

A Palestinian Authority health ministry statement says Hanan Abdel Rahman Abu Salama “was killed by [Israeli] occupation bullets” in Faqoua village, near the northern West Bank city of Jenin.

According to witness testimonies collected by the village council, Abu Salama was killed while picking olives with her family.

“An Israeli in military clothing arrived at the place in a white car and fired about 10 bullets at the Abu Salama family, who were picking olives on their land,” Faqoua village councilor Munir Barakat tells AFP.

“A few days ago, the council published an invitation to the village residents to go to their agricultural lands to pick olives,” says Barakat.

He adds that the shooting occurred near a wall erected by Israeli authorities in the area.

Hanan Abd Alrahman Abu Salama, a 59-year-old Palestinian woman, was shot and killed by the Israeli army when she was picking olives on her own land in Jenin, West Bank.

The olive season has turned into a season of killing for the Palestinian people, whether at the hands of the… pic.twitter.com/RI0For2u3p

— Ihab Hassan (@IhabHassane) October 17, 2024