Palestinian Man Killed by Israeli Fire at West Bank Barrier Near Jerusalem
CAIRO (AP) — Israeli forces shot and killed a Palestinian man at a concrete barrier separating the occupied West Bank from Jerusalem on Sunday, the latest in a recent string of deadly incidents along the fortified line, the Palestinian Health Ministry confirmed.
The victim was identified as Imad Haroun Ishtayeh, 26, from the village of Salim, east of Nablus. The ministry said Israeli troops fired at him in the town of al-Ram, striking him in the thigh. He was pronounced dead upon arrival at the Palestinian Medical Complex in Ramallah.
Video footage circulating on social media showed people carrying Ishtayeh’s body as they descended a ladder propped against the wire-topped barrier, with traffic continuing to pass and a horn sounding in the background.
Israeli police did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the shooting.
Ishtayeh was apparently trying to cross from the West Bank into Israel — a journey that has become increasingly perilous for Palestinians seeking work. Earlier this month, a 44-year-old father was killed in a similar attempt.
The number of unauthorized West Bank Palestinians trying to enter Israel has climbed sharply since the Israeli government severely restricted the issuance of work permits following the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack that ignited the Gaza war. Before the conflict, tens of thousands of Palestinians held legal permits to work inside Israel. Those permits were largely revoked overnight, plunging the West Bank into a severe economic crisis.
Unemployment in the territory has spiked as the economy contracts. According to Sunday’s report by the official Palestinian news agency WAFA, citing the General Federation of Palestinian Trade Unions, roughly 50 Palestinian workers have been killed by Israeli fire since the war began, and more than 38,000 have been detained — though many have since been released.
Sunday’s killing adds to a growing toll of West Bank Palestinians who have lost their lives at the barrier, highlighting the human cost of the region’s worsening economic and security landscape.