Israel says investigating soldier over killing of detained Palestinian in Gaza

The Israeli military said on Tuesday it is investigating a soldier suspected of shooting dead a Palestinian who had been captured and detained by troops in the Gaza Strip.

"[A Palestinian man] was handed over to the supervision of a soldier, who, under suspicion, allegedly shot him, resulting in his death," the army said of the Sunday incident.

"In light of the preliminary information, a military police investigation has been initiated to examine the circumstances of the shooting," it added in a statement sent to AFP.

Hundreds of Palestinians have been detained since Israel's military onslaught on the Gaza Strip began on 7 October.

Last month, the Hamas called for an international investigation into "summary executions" of dozens of Gazans. The army said at the time that it was "unaware of" any such killings.

The push for a probe followed the announcement by the United Nations human rights office that it had received "disturbing" reports that Israeli troops had "summarily killed" at least 11 unarmed Palestinians in a possible war crime in Gaza.

Israeli troops also mistakenly shot dead three Israeli hostages in Gaza, while at least 18 soldiers have been killed in friendly fire incidents, according to military figures.

Several Palestinians have also died in custody over the past few weeks, a number of them in southern Israel, Israeli media reported.

The Israeli army has said that it is investigating the deaths of detainees captured during military operations in Gaza.

The army came under severe condemnation from human rights groups early last month after Israeli television showed scores of Palestinian men in military custody stripped naked on a Gaza street.

This includes Diaa al-Kahlout, the Gaza bureau chief for The New Arab's sister site Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, who was detained by Israeli forces on 7 December. 

As a result of Israel's conduct in the war South Africa has lodged a complaint to the International Court of Justice which could see Israel charged with breaching its responsibilities under the Genocide Convention.

At least 22,185 Palestinians have been killed by Israel's indiscriminate and relentless military campaign on Gaza, and a further 57,035 were injured.