A spokesman for the NGO says there is “a growing ease with which Israeli soldiers open fire on Palestinian children, leading to an increase in the number of those killed or injured.”
The Israeli army has killed 16 Palestinian children in the occupied West Bank since the beginning of 2025, despite them “posing no real threat to the soldiers,” according to the Defense for Children International.
“The failure to hold Israeli soldiers accountable for their violations against Palestinians has effectively given them the green light to continue their actions,” Ayed Abu Eqtaish, the accountability program director of the Defense for Children International, told the Anadolu news agency.
Israeli forces fatally shot two Palestinian children in the back today in the occupied West Bank. Soldiers fired on both children from inside armored military vehicles.
Ayman Al-Hemouni, 12, in Hebron and Rimas Ammouri, 13, in Jenin.
Read more: https://t.co/7fg5TKtaAg pic.twitter.com/wLyenOKoqz
— Defense for Children (@DCIPalestine) February 21, 2025
Abu Eqtaish said that there is “a growing ease with which Israeli soldiers open fire on Palestinian children, leading to an increase in the number of those killed or injured.”
‘No Threat’ Posed
Highlighting the shooting of Ayman Al-Hammouni, a 13-year-old Palestinian who was killed on February 21 in the city of Hebron (Al Khalil), Abu Eqtaish said, “the child posed no threat to the soldiers at the moment he was shot and killed.”
Palestinian Child Shot by Israeli Forces – The Guardian Details Last Moments
Israeli soldiers “have repeatedly and deliberately obstructed ambulances carrying the wounded in recent incidents and have even assaulted the families of the injured, turning these actions into a systematic military practice,” he emphasized.
Rules of Engagement
On February 10, the Israeli daily Haaretz reported that the Israeli army has expanded its rules of engagement in the occupied West Bank, leading to a rise in the number of Palestinian civilian deaths, Anadolu reported.
The newspaper, citing Israeli military unit commanders, reported that the Central Command of the Israeli army has decided to apply the same rules of engagement used in the Gaza Strip to the West Bank — allowing the killing of any unarmed Palestinian, whether they are suspected of anything or not.
Through a Child’s Eyes: Genocide of the Palestinian People in Gaza, a short documentary produced by Defense for Children International – Palestine, premieres on February 25, 2025.
Sign up to attend the virtual premiere: https://t.co/E9Ev4lo6rp pic.twitter.com/HAFTC4zYWG
— Defense for Children (@DCIPalestine) February 18, 2025
Anadolu further reported that the article explained that “the orders made it easier for soldiers to pull the trigger at the behest of Central Command Commander Avi Blot.”
In addition, the newspaper reportedly quoted Israeli soldiers taking part in the ongoing military operations in the West Bank as saying that Blot permitted them to shoot with the intent to kill Palestinians without resorting to arresting them.
The soldiers explained that the recent high death toll of unarmed Palestinians in the West Bank was “unusual,” attributing it to Blot’s orders allowing them to shoot and kill any Palestinian suspected of planting explosive devices or “tampering with the land,” the Anadolu report added.
Dozens Killed, Thousands Displaced
The Israeli army has been conducting operations in the northern West Bank since January 21, killing at least 64 people and displacing thousands.
Israel Set to Pass Bill to Annex Illegal West Bank Settlements near Jerusalem
At least 927 Palestinians have been killed and nearly 7,000 injured in attacks in the West Bank by the Israeli army and illegal Jewish settlers since the start of the onslaught against the Gaza Strip on October 7, 2023, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry, reported Anadolu.
In July last year, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) declared that Israel’s long-standing occupation of Palestinian territories is “unlawful,” demanding the evacuation of all settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
(Anadolu, PC)
