Citizen Killed and 5 Others, Including a Child, Wounded, in Family Dispute in Occupied East Jerusalem

Field update

Yesterday, family dispute that broke out in al-Za’ayyem village in occupied East Jerusalem resulted in the killing of a citizen by a stray bullet and the injury of 5 others, including a child, with live bullets during fire exchange.

According to investigations conducted by the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR), at approximately 22:00 on Saturday, 26 September 2020, a violent family dispute erupted between Edkidek and Abu Ghaliya families in al-Za’ayyem village in occupied East Jerusalem, which is in Israeli-controlled areas, over the ownership of a plot of land.

Machine guns were extensively used for the first time during the dispute, as bullets reached several nearby neighborhoods such as al-Tur neighborhood and Isawiya village. The clashes between the two families continued for few hours. As a result, dozens of vehicles and houses sustained material damage, in addition to a fuel station at the entrance to the village, which set on fire.

Moreover, the indiscriminate firing led to the injury of Nader Mohamed Saliymah (62), who was not a party to the dispute, while he was in the travel agency belonging to his family near the disputed plot of land. The bullets penetrated the agency tin-plate walls, wounding him in his head and killing him immediately. Also, five others citizens, including a child ‘Abed al-Rahman Edkidek (16), were injured with stray bullets; one of them is from al-Tur neighborhood.

The Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) stated that six persons, who sustained live bullets wounds during the dispute in al-Za’ayyem village, received treatment on the spot by the PRCS crews.

PCHR notes with concern the growing phenomenon of weapon proliferation and condemns weapon use in family and personal disputes that jeopardize the right to life, the rule of law, and the Palestinian civil peace.