Israeli police shoot, kill Palestinian after stab attack leaves 2 lightly injured

DEC. 14, 2016 1:16 P.M. (UPDATED: DEC. 14, 2016 3:51 P.M.)
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JERUSALEM (Ma'an) -- Israeli forces shot and killed a Palestinian after he

carried out a stabbing attack that one Israeli officer and one Israeli civilian
minor lightly injured in the Old City of occupied East Jerusalem early on
Wednesday afternoon.
According to Israeli police spokeswoman Luba al-Samri, a suspect approached a
group of Israeli police forces deployed near the Austrian Hospice hospital in the
Old City, took out a screwdriver and stabbed one of the officers in the head,
lightly injuring him.
Israeli forces shot the alleged attacker, "neutralizing" him, al-Samri said,
later adding that the youth, whom she identified as a 21-year-old resident of
the occupied West Bank village of Beit Surik in the Jerusalem district, had been
taken to the Hadassah hospital in "critical condition."
Israeli forces regularly use the term "neutralize" to indicate that a Palestinian
has either been killed or wounded by Israeli forces.
A spokesperson for Hadassah hospital told Ma'an that the Palestinian
succumbed to gunshot wounds at around 2:30 p.m. in the hospital.

She added that a 14-year-old had also been admitted with light wounds in
connection with the incident. However, it was not clear from Israeli reports if
the youth's injuries were sustained directly from the suspect.
Witnesses said that the Palestinian was left on the ground bleeding for 20
minutes, adding that a Palestinian doctor arrived on the scene but was pushed
away by Israeli forces before they finally let him administer first aid to the
wounded Palestinian until Israeli ambulances arrived at the scene.
A video shared by al-Quds news agency showed the doctor being initially pushed
away by Israeli forces.
Israeli forces also closed roads leading to al-Wadi Street, where the deadly
altercation took place, and heavily deployed near Damascus Gate and Lions Gate,
preventing people from coming in or out.
They also detained three youths on Sultan Suleiman Street just north of the
Old City after firing shots in the air to disperse people gathered in the area.
According to Ma'an documentation, the youth is the latest of 243 Palestinians to
have been killed by Israelis in a wave of unrest across the occupied Palestinian
territory which began in October 2015, 20 of whom were killed in the Old City
of Jerusalem.
Meanwhile, 34 Israelis were killed by Palestinians during the same time period.
Throughout the unrest, rights groups have repeatedly denounced what they have
termed Israeli forces' "shoot-to-kill" policy against Palestinians who did not
constitute a threat at the time of their death or who could have been subdued
in a non-lethal manner.
While Israel alleges many of those were attempting to attack Israelis when they
were shot, Palestinians and rights groups have disputed Israel's version of
events in a number of cases.
Al-Samri shared a photograph of the screwdriver reportedly used by the
Palestinian to carry out the stabbing attack. The picture did not show visible
traces of blood on the alleged weapon.

(Credit: Israeli police)