Two Palestinian youths were killed after the Israeli army shot at a vehicle near the town of Jaba, south of Jenin in the occupied West Bank on Saturday morning, according to Palestinian authorities. The Palestinian Ministry of Health stated that Az Zaidin Basim Hamamra (24 years old) and Amjad Adnan Khalilia (23 years old) were killed "by the gunfire of the Israeli occupation during the aggression against the town of Jaba south of Jenin."
The ministry also reported the death of a young man, Yazan Samer Al-Jabri (19 years old) from Ya'bad west of Jenin, "due to injuries sustained days earlier," raising the number of martyrs since the beginning of this year to 12, including 3 children. The "Wafa" news agency reported from security sources that Israeli forces stormed the site of the evacuated "Tarsala" settlement and set up a military checkpoint at the junction to Jaba, leading to clashes in the area where soldiers fired live ammunition, sound bombs, and tear gas at the youth, resulting in one being shot in the foot.
The sources added that Israeli forces fired at the vehicle carrying Hamamra and Khalilia at the Jaba junction, pursued them to the nearby village of Al-Funduqiyya, and shot at them again, resulting in their deaths. The evacuated "Tarsala" settlement is located on a Palestinian hill south of the city of Jenin along the main road connecting the Jenin and Nablus governorates, near the town of Jaba, and was evacuated by Israeli authorities in 2005 as part of the unilateral evacuation plan carried out by then-Prime Minister Sharon.
