LONDON: Israeli security forces have killed about 100 Palestinian children in the West Bank since October as they ramp up raids on local communities, The Times reported on Tuesday.
One of those children, 4-year-old Ruqaya Jahalin, was shot while traveling with her mother and three siblings to visit relatives in Beit Iksa, a West Bank village about 4 miles from Jerusalem.
To get to Beit Iksa, the Bedouin family had to take a shuttle bus through an Israeli checkpoint. The minibus carried eight people: Ruqaya, her mother, three siblings, two other Palestinians, and the driver.
Despite being cleared by an Israeli policewoman, their vehicle was fired upon by Israeli officers, who shot Ruqaya in the torso on Jan. 7.
Her mother, 38-year-old Aisha, attempted to pull her down, only to find blood running down the little girl’s hand.
The family said they were ordered by Israeli border police to remain in the minibus for the next 50 minutes, The Times reported.
Aisha was trapped in the van, watching her daughter slowly die.
“My mum was going crazy. I had to hold her back and tell her not to leave — they will kill you, don’t leave,” Ruqaya’s sister Rahma said.
“Ruqaya’s body was tensing up. She was squeezing herself in pain,” she added.
The driver of the minibus later counted 28 bullet holes in his vehicle.
“The Israelis promised me there would be an investigation, but I haven’t heard anything,” Ruqaya’s father, Ahmad, 40, a Bedouin shepherd, told The Times.
Israel has killed nearly 400 Palestinians in the West Bank since October, with a quarter of them being children. This has largely been overshadowed by Israel’s war in Gaza, which has killed over 28,000 people, the majority of whom are women and children.
There have been several other disturbing incidents. In November, CCTV footage showed an 8-year-old boy collapsing after being shot by Israeli soldiers in Jenin.
Jordan’s King Abdullah, speaking alongside President Joe Biden during a visit to the US on Monday, condemned the high death toll in the West Bank, noting the large number of children killed.
