Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank have been accused of using a wounded Palestinian man as a human shield during a raid on the city of Jenin.
A video posted online and verified by Al Jazeera shows Mujahed Azmi, a Palestinian resident of Jenin, strapped to a military jeep as it passes by two ambulances.
According to his family, Israeli forces carried out an arrest raid in Jenin, during which Azmi was wounded. When the family requested an ambulance, the military took Azmi, strapped him to the hood of their jeep, and drove off.
Watch the video here:
The Israeli military in a statement said Israeli forces were fired at and exchanged fire, wounding a suspect and apprehending him.
"This morning [Saturday], during counter-terrorism operations to apprehend wanted suspects in the area of Wadi Burqin, terrorists opened fire at IDF troops, who responded with fire," the IDF statement said.
"During the exchange of fire, one of the suspects was injured and apprehended.
"In violation of orders and standard operating procedures, the suspect was taken by the forces while tied on top of a vehicle.
"The conduct of the forces in the video of the incident does not conform to the values of the IDF. The incident will be investigated and dealt with accordingly."
Also Read:
There has been a surge in violence in the West Bank since the start of the war in the Gaza Strip, triggered by Hamas's attack on southern Israel on 7 October.
Prior to the ongoing war on Gaza, violence in the occupied West Bank was already on the rise, and the situation has continued to deteriorate. Israeli military raids in West Bank cities and villages have become more frequent, while Jewish settlers have been rampaging through Palestinian villages.
This incident involving a Palestinian man being used as a 'human shield' has sparked widespread outrage and has gone viral on social media. At least 37,551 people have been killed and 85,911 wounded in Israel’s war on Gaza since October 7.
Francesca Albanese, the United Nations’ special rapporteur to the occupied Palestinian territory, called it “human shielding in action”.
“It is flabbergasting how a state born 76 years ago has managed to turn international law literally on its head,” she wrote in a post on X. “This risks being the end of multilateralism, which for some influential member states no longer serves any relevant purpose.”
