Two-year-old Palestinian child dies from wounds days after Israeli shooting

A two-year-old Palestinian boy succumbed to his wounds on Monday after being shot in the head by Israeli troops last week, his family confirmed.

Mohammad Tamimi sustained the injury during an Israeli raid in the village of Nabi Saleh, near Ramallah in the occupied West Bank on Thursday, when forces opened fire on a vehicle at the entrance to the village.

The two-year-old’s father, activist Bilal Tamimi, was also wounded after being shot in the shoulder during the assault.

Mohammad Tamimi (2 yr old), who was shot in the head last Thursday by IOF in Nabi Saleh, near Ramallah, has died in the hospital. The child was shot along with his father who was seriously injured as they were preparing to leave their home. Silence is Complicity.
📸 Hagar Shezaf pic.twitter.com/qm9ayw2Qmx

— Khaled Abu-Qare (@KhaledAbuqare) June 5, 2023

Both the father and son were admitted for treatment at a hospital in the illegal settlement of Nevei Tsof. The younger Tamimi was later transferred to Tel HaShomer hospital in the Israeli city of Ramat Gan due to his critical condition. His father was taken to another hospital in Ramallah.

The toddler was put on life support before being pronounced dead on Monday, Naji al-Tamini, the head of Nabi Saleh, told The New Arab’s Arabic-language site, Al-Araby Al-Jadeed.

Witnesses said the father and his child were preparing to leave their home in the West Bank village, which is close to a military checkpoint, at the time of the attack.

The young child’s body will be taken to Ramallah later, before being buried in his home village on Tuesday, the official Palestinian news agency Wafa reported.

Israeli forces have carried out near-daily raids in the occupied West Bank since March last year, in what has been described as one of the bloodiest periods in recent Palestinian history. Nabi Saleh, where Tamimi is from, has been one of the main targets of such incursions.

These raids have intensified since the beginning of 2023, after Benjamin Netanyahu’s far-right government came to power in December last year. Israel has also carried out numerous airstrikes on the besieged Gaza Strip.

At least 160 Palestinians this year, with Mohammad Tamimi being the latest casualty.

The two-year-old is among the youngest victims of Israel’s violence in the Palestinian territories in 2023.