Palestinians say settlers killed teenager; IDF: We're checking

Palestinian security officials claim West Bank Jews shot 19 year old in village near Nablus. Settlers: Another blood libel

Ynet reporters|Published: 01.27.11 , 15:04

Palestinian security officials claimed that a 19-year-old Palestinian was shot to death by Jewish settlers on Thursday in the village of Iraq Burin, located near Nablus in the West Bank.

According to the Palestinians, settlers from Yitzhar arrived at the village and began attacking people. At some point, they claimed, the settlers opened fire and killed Udai Maher Qadous. Palestinian medical officials who were alerted to the scene said the teenager was hit in the chest. He was evacuated to a hospital in Nablus, where he died of his wounds, the officials reported.

Iraq Burin Council Head Abd Elrahim Qadous told Ynet, "Udai walked with his cousin to the fields near the village. The fields are situated just beneath the Har Bracha settlement, and at a certain point shots were fired at them from the settlement. The gunshots hurt (Udai's) chest. Then the settlers came down, beat them and fled the scene."

The IDF could not confirm the report, and settler leaders said they had no knowledge of any shooting. "This would not be the first time the Palestinians kill one another for criminal or other reasons and blame the settlers," one of the West Bank's Jewish leaders said.

"It is a sort of blood libel aimed at promoting Palestinian interests," he said.

The Civil Administration said it had indeed received a complaint from the Palestinians, but questioned the credibility of the report, as it was not published as soon as the teenager died in the morning hours.

Earlier, Palestinians said a commercial vehicle had been set on fire overnight in the northern West Bank village of Ein Abus.

The vehicle was torched at around 3 am. The perpetrators spray-painted "Eye for an eye – we won’t forget" in Hebrew next to it.

Ein Abus resident Mahmoud Rian said he was certain Jewish settlers were behind the act. "This is not the first time this has happened. Settlers from Yitzhar come here whenever they are angry about something - regardless of whether we have anything to do with it – and cause damage," he said, adding that the vehicle was burned completely.