Screencap of a video showing the two men exiting the building with their hands raised before their execution.
Straight execution: ‘Israeli’ forces kill two Palestinians in Jenin after surrendering
Note: AI technology was used to generate this article’s audio.
- The ‘Israeli’ military confirmed it is reviewing an "incident" in Jenin where Border Police fatally shot two Palestinians after they had surrendered and exited a besieged structure.
- The military's acknowledgment of the surrender before the shooting is being viewed as an indirect admission of a breach of rules of engagement and international humanitarian law.
The Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) said Thursday it is reviewing what it called an “incident” where two Palestinians were executed in Jenin by ‘Israeli’ border police officers, despite the fact they had surrendered and came out raising their hands, according to video footage.
“The forces entered the area, encircled a structure in which the suspects were located, and initiated a surrender procedure that lasted several hours,” the military and police say, adding that after using heavy machinery on the structure, the two suspects exited.
“After they exited the building, shots were fired at the wanted persons,” the statement says.
The IOF and police say that the “incident is under review by the commanders on the ground, and will be transferred to the relevant authorities for examination.”
The Palestinian Authority’s General Authority for Civil Affairs identifies the two men seen in the footage as 26-year-old Mahmoud Qassem Abdallah and 37-year-old Youssef Asasa.
It added that their bodies were detained by ‘Israeli’ security forces.
West Bank Escalations
The killings occur amidst an escalation of ‘Israeli’ military operations across cities and refugee camps in the West Bank.
Palestinian reports confirmed that the incident took place after the location of the two Palestinians was subjected to an intense siege.
Palestinian sources indicated that the execution was carried out in a warehouse in the Jabal Abi Dhahir area of Jenin, a warehouse that occupation forces had completely surrounded.
Indirect Admission of Engagement Rule Violations
The army's announcement of an investigation into the incident, and its acknowledgment that the Palestinians had surrendered before the shooting, is considered an indirect admission of a breach of rules of engagement and a violation of international humanitarian law.
Ben-Gvir
‘Israel's’ far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir said he "fully supports" the ‘Israeli’ soldiers seen in the video.
"I fully support the Border Guard members and Israeli army soldiers who shot at wanted terrorists who emerged from a building in Jenin. The forces acted exactly as expected of them -- terrorists must die!" Ben Gvir wrote on X.
