Israeli soldiers shoot, kill Palestinian man who opened fire on them
Published June 29, 2017
JERUSALEM (JTA) — Israeli soldiers shot and killed a Palestinian man who opened fire on them in Hebron as they searched for concealed weapons.
The Palestinian man was identified by the Palestinian Maan news agency as Iyad Munir Arafat Ghaith, 23, from Hebron. It is not clear whether he died where he was shot or in a Palestinian hospital in Hebron.
The incident occurred as the IDF Special Operations Unit Duvdevan, using soldiers disguised as Palestinians, searched for concealed weapons on Wednesday evening.
“Forces encountered an armed Palestinian who opened fire. In response to the immediate threat, forces fired towards the suspect,” the IDF said in a statement after the incident.
The Palestinian man was the first to open fire, according to reports. No Israeli soldiers were injured in the incident
The soldiers had planned to arrest a Palestinian arms dealer living in Hebron when confronted with the armed man. After the incident they reportedly continued on to find their original target.
Maan reports that Ghaith is the 35th Palestinian to have been killed by an Israeli in 2017. Eight Israelis have been killed by Palestinians during the same time.
