16-year-old Gazan Shot to Death by Israeli Soldiers While Waving His Hands; Army to Investigate Incident

Ahmad Masbah Abu Tuyur who was wounded in Friday's protests succumbed to his wounds, bringing the death toll from protest to two ■ Four Gazans who tried to enter Israel Saturday were caught carrying hatchet and knife

Sep 8, 2018

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16-year-old Palestinian teen waving his hands at Israeli soldiers before being shot to death near Rafah on September 7, 2018.Credit: Screengrab/ Twitter

Jack Khoury

Yaniv Kubovich

Almog Ben Zikri

Sep 8, 2018

A 16-year-old Palestinian, identified as Ahmed Masabah Abu Tuyur, died Saturday morning after he was injured on Friday from live Israeli fire at a demonstration in the area of Rafah, Gaza's health ministry said.

A video published on social media shows Abu Tuyur hurling a rock towards Israeli soldiers from a great distance and waving at them for about ten seconds before he was shot.

Video showing incident where 16-year-old Gazan was shot to death

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Also on Saturday, the Israeli military identified four suspects attempting to cross into Israel from the northern Gaza strip, the Israel Defense Forces said. According to the army, the suspects were carrying a knife and a hatchet.

On Friday, during the weekly "March for Return" protests that Palestinians have held on the Gaza-Israel border since the end of March, 17-year-old Bilal Hafaje was killed by live Israeli fire, while at least another 30 were wounded, the Gaza Health Ministry reported.

Gaza's Health Ministry also said that a 19-year-old Palestinian man died of wounds he had sustained in clashes along the border on July 14. The ministry identified the man as Amjad Hamdona, whose death brings the amount of demonstrators killed along the border to 174.

In addition, 64 Palestinians were injured Friday after inhaling tear gas or suffering from contusions, the ministry said, with 37 requiring hospitalization. Some 7,000 people attended the demonstrations, which protested U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to cut the entire U.S. aid budget of the UN agency in charge of assisting Palestinian refugees and their descendants.

The military meanwhile said that one of its aircraft struck a Hamas observation post in the northern Gaza Strip after a grenade was thrown toward troops. Another observation post was also targeted elsewhere in Gaza.

Protesters pull out a part of barbed wire of the fence of the Gaza Strip border with Israel, during a protest east of Gaza City, September 7, 2018. Credit: Adel Hana/AP