Jenin shooting: IDF soldiers kill two unarmed Palestinians after surrender, footage sparks outrage
text_fields
Two unarmed Palestinian men in Jenin were shot to death by the IDF moments after they surrendered during a West Bank raid.
Footage circulating on social media has triggered international condemnation.
The Israeli military has announced an internal review, though officials have not acknowledged wrongdoing.
Videos recorded by local Palestinian media show Israeli armoured vehicles surrounding a building in the Jabal Abu Dhahir area of Jenin. An engineering vehicle tears open a roller door, after which two Palestinian men emerge with their hands raised. They are then seen lying on the ground as soldiers stand over them; one soldier appears to kick a detainee before ordering both men back inside. Moments after they re-enter, troops appear to open fire.
The footage shows soldiers lowering the door over the bodies and covering the area with blankets. The Palestinian Ministry of Health identified the victims as Al-Muntasir Billah Mahmoud Qassem Abdullah, 26, and Yousef Ali Yousef Asa’asa, 37, and said their bodies were withheld.
The Palestinian Authority condemned the event as an extrajudicial killing and a violation of international law. PA ambassador to the UK Husam Zomlot called it a “summary execution” and a “war crime,” urging accountability rather than statements of concern.
In a joint statement, the Israel Defense Forces and Israeli Police confirmed an incident occurred during an operation targeting Palestinians accused of throwing explosives and firing on troops. They said the two men surrendered only after “several hours,” and that “fire was directed toward the suspects” once they exited. Commanders, they added, were reviewing the circumstances.
Israel’s national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, praised the soldiers, saying they acted as expected and that “terrorists must die.”
Israeli rights group B’Tselem renewed criticism of military conduct, while other advocates urged international action against what they described as longstanding impunity.
The killings come amid intensified Israeli raids in Jenin, Tulkarm, and the Nur Shams refugee camp, which Palestinian officials say have involved beatings, property destruction, and widespread abuses. More than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces and settlers in the West Bank since October 2023, and over 32,000 people displaced.