Key facts
- An Israeli soldier shot a Palestinian man in the leg in Faqqua, occupied West Bank.
- The incident occurred when Israeli settlers entered Palestinian-owned land with livestock.
- Eyewitnesses stated Israeli soldiers fired at residents, with one shooting Qassem Hussam.
- The IDF confirmed a soldier fired into the air and toward a Palestinian during friction between civilians.
- Hussam was taken to hospital in a light-to-moderate condition.
- The IDF is investigating the soldier's actions, which may have breached army protocol.
An Israeli soldier shot a Palestinian man in the leg during a confrontation in the occupied West Bank town of Faqqua, according to eyewitnesses and the Israeli military. The incident occurred when Israeli settlers entered Palestinian-owned land to graze livestock, prompting villagers to intervene. Israeli forces were present and, according to witnesses, opened fire. Qassem Hussam, a Palestinian man in his mid-30s, was wounded in the leg.
The IDF confirmed that a report was received regarding friction between Israeli civilians and Palestinians, and that an IDF force at the scene fired into the air and toward a Palestinian. Mohammed al-Sheikh, who was with Hussam, told The Guardian that soldiers began shooting after the confrontation started, and one soldier shot Hussam. Hussam was taken to hospital in a light-to-moderate condition.
The Israeli military stated the incident is being reviewed by commanders and that the soldier who fired is under investigation for potentially breaching army protocol. Video footage reportedly shows Israeli soldiers and settlers confronting unarmed Palestinian men before shots were fired.
This event is the latest in a series of incidents raising concerns about the Israeli government's ability to curb settler violence in the West Bank. On September 8, UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham expressed concern over the suffering in the region. UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband announced that the UK government now officially considers Israel's occupation of the West Bank unlawful and will impose sanctions on trade with Israeli settlements. This policy shift followed a summer of rising settler violence, which prompted 12 countries, including France and Canada, to announce similar sanctions.
In response to Miliband's description of settler activity as "ethnic cleansing," Israel's Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar announced retaliatory measures, including closing the consulate and imposing entry bans on several Members of Parliament. This has led to a significant deterioration in diplomatic relations between the UK and Israel.
Separately, Israeli forces conducted raids in the Jenin governorate, arresting six people and injuring a 14-year-old boy. Settlers also attacked the outskirts of Burqa, east of Ramallah, throwing stones. On September 4, two Palestinian teenagers were killed in al-Mughayyir after settlers, escorted by police and military, entered the village and took sheep. According to the UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), over 1,111 Palestinians, including 243 children, have been killed in the occupied West Bank since October 7, 2023.