Injuries from occupation bullets in Jerusalem and the West Bank, and church warnings of settler attacks

A Palestinian child was injured by live bullets in occupied Jerusalem, while Israeli forces carried out a wide campaign of incursions and arrests in several cities and towns in the West Bank, resulting in injuries and the arrest of dozens of citizens. The Jerusalem Governorate reported that a 15-year-old child was injured by Israeli occupation forces' bullets in the town of Al-Eizariya, east of occupied Jerusalem, after a special force in a civilian vehicle opened fire on a group of children and youths near the separation wall in the Qanater area.

The Governorate added that the child, a resident of Abu Dis town, was injured in the lower extremities and suffered severe bleeding, and his condition was described as critical. The Governorate stated that Israeli forces prevented ambulance crews and citizens from reaching the injured child for more than an hour, and imposed a military cordon on the area, before allowing Palestinian Red Crescent crews to provide first aid and transport him to the hospital.

In the occupied West Bank, Israeli occupation forces arrested 21 citizens during a wide incursion campaign into the town of Azzun, east of Qalqilya, accompanied by a complete closure of the town's entrances, raids on homes, searches and destruction of property, and field detention and interrogation of a number of residents. Local sources reported that occupation forces stormed the city of Al-Bireh and stationed themselves near Al-Am'ari refugee camp, and fired live bullets and a flare bomb, with no injuries reported.

In Hebron Governorate, a 20-year-old young man was injured by live bullet shrapnel in his hands and legs during an incursion into the town of Sa'ir, northeast of the city. A number of citizens also suffered from suffocation due to the firing of tear gas canisters in the towns of Sa'ir and Beit Ummar, where witnesses reported that occupation forces assaulted a young man and closed commercial shops. Israeli forces also arrested a young man from Khirbet Janba in Masafer Yatta, south of Hebron, after storming citizens' homes and firing sound bombs.

In Salfit Governorate, two citizens from the town of Deir Ballut, including the head of the town's municipality, were arrested during an incursion into its western area, while Israeli forces raided homes in the eastern neighborhood of Jenin city, detained 3 young men and two children, and conducted searches and identity checks of citizens.

In a related context, the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem and all Palestine and Jordan, Theophilos III, warned of escalating settler attacks in the West Bank, expressing his concern about settlement expansion and restrictions on freedom of worship in Jerusalem. During his meeting with consuls general and members of the diplomatic corps, he called for serious international action to protect civilians and ensure access to holy sites, emphasizing the heavy human cost borne by Palestinians, especially in the Gaza Strip.

Since the outbreak of the war on the Gaza Strip on October 8, 2023, Israel has escalated its attacks in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, through killing, arresting, displacing, and expanding settlements. These attacks have resulted in the martyrdom of at least 1,112 Palestinians, the injury of about 11,500 others, in addition to the arrest of more than 21,000 people, according to official data.

Patriarch Theophilos III of Jerusalem called for serious international action to protect civilians and ensure access to holy sites, emphasizing the heavy human cost borne by Palestinians.