Hundreds of outraged mourners turned out Wednesday for the funeral of a Palestinian teenager who died after being shot by Israeli soldiers at a military checkpoint at Hebron in the West Bank.
Israel Defense Forces said the teenager was shot Tuesday morning after she tried to stab an Israeli soldier. “Forces responded with fire at the attacker & identified hit,” the IDF said.
But a witness said she was surrounded by soldiers and was standing still when shot.
She has been identified as Hadil al-Hashlamon, a first-year student at Hebron University and the daughter of Dr. Salaheddin Hashlamon, head of the anesthesia department of the Al-Ahli Hospital in Hebron, according to the Palestinian Authority-controlled WAFA news agency, citing the International Middle East Media Center. Her family said she was 18 years old.
The Palestinians’ anger was fueled by pictures posted on Facebook by the group Youth Against Settlements that showed soldiers pointing guns at a woman covered in black while she appears to be standing still.
The family confirmed the death to CNN, which could not independently verify the woman was al-Hashlamon.
The IDF provided CNN with a picture showing a knife that they said belonged to al-Hashlamon.
Al-Hashlamon’s brother, Arafat, gave an account of the shooting he said he got from eyewitnesses.
“She was on her way to the university, where she should be checked. There were only male soldiers. She asked them to bring her a female soldier to check her. They refused,” Arafat al-Hashlamon said.
“She was ready to turn back if there were no female soldiers to check her when she was shot,” he said.
Hadil al-Hashlamon was taken to Shaare Zedek hospital in Jerusalem, where she died.
Family members said soldiers refused to allow Palestinian medics to treat her at the scene. WAFA said Israeli soldiers prevented a Palestinian Red Crescent ambulance from approaching the woman and left her lying on the ground 30 minutes until another ambulance arrived.
The Jerusalem Post reported that about 200 Palestinians rioted at the checkpoint where she was killed, throwing rocks and firebombs at soldiers.
Dispute over events in man’s death near Hebron
Palestinian media also accused Israeli soldiers of shooting a 21-year-old man on Tuesday and letting him bleed to death on the ground.
Diaa Mahmoud Talahmeh died near the village of Kharsa, south of Hebron, WAFA reported, citing witnesses and security forces.
The IDF said in a statement that soldiers were responding to a report of a blocked street in the town of Horsa late Monday night, southwest of Hebron. Upon arrival, the soldiers heard an explosion, according to the IDF, and found a body after searching the area.
“Initial inquiry suggests the suspect attempted to hurl an IED at an army vehicle when it detonated,” the IDF said.
WAFA said soldiers opened fire and killed him, and then cordoned off the area around Talahmeh and didn’t allow a Palestinian Red Crescent ambulance to approach.
The two deaths come during a time of soaring tensions.
Israel closed access to the West Bank and Gaza and restricted access to the Old City of Jerusalem because of the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur.
Israel says the restrictions are for security reasons, but Palestinian leaders say the measures are an “attack” on a holy site in Jerusalem, known to Muslims as al-Haram al-Sharif — the Noble Sanctuary — and to Jews as the Temple Mount.
It’s also the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha.
Arab youths and Israeli police clashed on September 13 at the al-Aqsa mosque complex in Jerusalem, one of the holiest sites in the world for both Muslims and Jews, hours before the start of the Jewish New Year.
Israeli police said they received intelligence on the eve of Rosh Hashanah that masked demonstrators were barricading themselves inside the mosque, while erecting barriers outside to prevent anyone from entering.
The Palestinian news agency Ma’an told a different story, reporting that Israeli forces “stormed the al-Aqsa Mosque compound shortly after dawn prayer, firing rubber-coated steel bullets and stun grenades, leading to the injury of several worshipers.”
