Palestinian teen who hurled firebomb dies days after being shot by IDF troops
Military says 17-year-old Ramzi Fathi Hamed threw Molotov cocktails at settlement of Ofra, close to West Bank town of Silwad
Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian is The Times of Israel's military correspondent
A Palestinian teenager who was shot by Israeli troops after hurling a firebomb at a settlement in the West Bank last week succumbed to his wounds on Monday, Palestinian health officials said.
The Palestinian Authority health ministry said 17-year-old Ramzi Fathi Hamed was shot and critically wounded near the West Bank town of Silwad early on August 3.
The teen’s father, Fatehi Hamed, told The Associated Press that his son was shot by Israeli troops after throwing firebombs at soldiers operating near Silwad.
A spokesperson for the Israel Defense Forces told The Times of Israel that forces operating near Silwad identified a Palestinian suspect hurling a Molotov cocktail at the nearby settlement of Ofra.
“The force responded with gunfire,” the military spokesperson said, adding that the suspect was hit and later was reported to have died.
“The circumstances of the incident are under investigation,” the spokesperson added.
مصادر محلية: استشهاد الفتى رمزي حامد (١٧عاما) متاثر باصابته قبل عدة أيام في سلواد شمال شرق رام الله. pic.twitter.com/R0lr09aoLR
— Newpress | نيو برس (@NewpressPs) August 7, 2023
Violence has surged across the West Bank over the past year and a half, with a rise in Palestinian shooting attacks against Israeli civilians and troops, near-nightly arrest raids by the military, and an uptick in attacks by extremist Jewish settlers against Palestinians.
On Monday afternoon, Palestinians hurled an improvised explosive device at the West Bank security barrier, the IDF said.
The military said that the IED that exploded near the barrier close to the Palestinian village of Araqah caused no injuries or damage. Footage published on social media showed the blast.
Araqah is close to the northern West Bank settlements of Shaked, Hinanit, and Tal Menashe, which are on the western, or Israeli, side of the barrier.
Palestinians detonated an explosive device near the West Bank security barrier, close to the Palestinian village of Araqah. IDF says no damage or injuries caused. pic.twitter.com/9mqw6i9Y0l
— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) August 7, 2023
Earlier Monday, the IDF said that troops detained 17 wanted Palestinians during sweeps across the West Bank, with violence in some areas. Five of the detainees were Palestinians suspected of being involved in clashes with settlers on Friday night, during which an Israeli settler shot a young Palestinian man dead.
Palestinian terror attacks in Israel and the West Bank have left 26 people dead and several others seriously wounded since the beginning of the year. According to a tally by The Times of Israel, 168 West Bank Palestinians have also been killed during the same period — most of them during clashes with security forces or while carrying out attacks, but some were uninvolved civilians and others were killed under unclear circumstances, including in cases by Israeli settlers.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
