Israeli forces have killed at least seven Palestinians in a raid on the occupied West Bank town of Qabatiya, with video footage showing soldiers pushing what appeared to be dead bodies from a rooftop.
The army stormed Qabatiya on Thursday, backed by bulldozers, fighter jets and drones in an assault that lasted several hours, with the Palestinian news agency Wafa confirming on Friday that seven people had been killed.
Video footage verified by Tel Aviv Tribune shows soldiers pushing apparently lifeless individuals from the roof of a building they had previously surrounded and attacked with anti-tank grenades, with one soldier clearly seen kicking one of the bodies until it fell over the edge.
In a message posted on X, the Palestinian Foreign Ministry described the act as a “crime” that exposes the “brutality” of the Israeli military.
Wafa reported Friday that the Israeli army threw three men from the building, after shooting them on the roof, with a military bulldozer later taking away their bodies.
Mustafa Barghouti, secretary-general of the Palestinian National Initiative, told Tel Aviv Tribune that the footage showed “absolutely savage and inhumane behaviour”.
Barghouti said he was not sure whether the soldiers checked whether the people they threw from the roof “were still alive or not.”
Under international law, soldiers are supposed to ensure that bodies, including those of enemy combatants, are treated decently.
The Israeli military, which claims to have killed four Palestinian gunmen in the clashes, acknowledged the presence of video evidence of the abuses, saying the incident was “under review”.
“This is a serious incident that is not in line with the values (of the Israeli army) and what is expected of (Israeli army) soldiers,” he said in a statement.
Shawan Jabarin, director of the Palestinian rights group Al-Haq, said he doubted Israel would properly investigate the incident.
“The most that will happen is that the soldiers will be punished, but there will be no real investigation or real prosecution,” Jabarin said.
“The images we saw are horrific and they are circulating here in Palestine. But in the end, the Palestinians are not surprised. Israel has a history of disrespecting the bodies of the Palestinians it kills,” said Leila Warah, who reported from Ramallah as raids continued in the territory on Friday.
School headquarters
The death toll rose to seven after Palestinian Red Crescent teams recovered the body of a Palestinian man, identified as Shadi Sami Zakarneh, from the building that had been besieged by Israeli forces.
During the Qabatiya attack, the Israeli army also bombed a vehicle near a shopping complex in the town, setting it ablaze in an attack that killed two young men, according to Wafa.
Doctors in the city confirmed another death due to “injuries sustained during the Israeli offensive,” the news agency said.
Eleven people were injured by live ammunition during the clashes. At least a thousand children were barricaded in two schools and a kindergarten.
The children were eventually evacuated by bus with the help of the Palestinian Red Crescent, but the city remained under siege throughout the night.
About 200 employees of the Education Directorate were unable to leave their building as Israeli forces surrounded the compound, Wafa reported.
In a brief voicemail, a teacher contacted by Tel Aviv Tribune described “a very dangerous situation around us.”
The latest raid comes less than a month after Israel launched its deadliest assault on West Bank towns since the second intifada.
On August 28, Israeli forces attacked the northern cities of Tulkarem, Tubas and Jenin in raids that lasted for weeks and killed at least 39 Palestinians.
More than 600 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank since October 7 – the deadliest year since the United Nations began keeping track of casualties in 2005.
“You can’t say this is part of the war, because there is no war in the West Bank,” Barghouti said. “There is war on one side, military actions on one side against a civilian population.”
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