Child Dies Due to Weapon Mishandling inside his House in Khan Younis

Field updates

A child was killed after sustaining a gunshot wound in his head while playing with a weapon at home in Khan Yunis, southern Gaza Strip. This incident is part of the state of recklessness and irresponsible use of weapons in the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt), which endangers the lives of citizens, including children, and threatens their right to life.

According to investigations conducted by the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) at approximately 23:00 on Thursday, 18 March 2021, while (Kh. S. R.) (14), was playing with a weapon inside their house in al-Nemsawi neighborhood, in Khan Yunis, two live bullets came out of the weapon and one penetrated his head. The child was immediately transported to Naser Medical Complex, where medical crews attempted to rescue him but to no avail.

Police sources and criminal investigators headed to the scene and opened an investigation into the incident, and confirmed that the child was playing with his brother’s weapon in a room inside the house, when two shots came out of the weapon; one of them entered his chin and exited from his head.

It should be noted that (16) Palestinian were killed in manifestations of social violence, misuse of weapons and assault on the rule of law, since the beginning of 2021: 8 in the West Bank and 8 in the Gaza Strip. Of those, armed family disputes resulted in the deaths of  8 (6 in the West Bank and 2 in the Gaza Strip); Five others were killed due to misuse of weapons (4 in the Gaza Strip, including 2 children, and 1 in the West Bank); in addition to the murder of a Palestinian in the West Bank during a law enforcement mission, and 2 murders in the Gaza Strip during shooting crime in a psychiatric hospital.

PCHR expresses its grave concern over the recurrent losses of innocent lives due to weapon mishandling. PCHR calls upon competent authorities to take the necessary measure to protect civilians from the dangers of firearms.