Security Chaos and Proliferation of Small Arms

Misuse of Weapons by Armed Groups and Security Personnel

Field Update

23 March 2006

4 Citizens injured by Gunfire at a Wedding Celebration in Khan Yunis

On the evening of Wednesday, 22 March 2006, four citizens were injured in the city of Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip.  The injuries occurred when an armed man fired a gun during a friend’s wedding.

PCHR’s initial investigation indicates that at approximately 22:45 on Wednesday, an armed man fired shots during a wedding to salute his friend, the groom, Ismail Mohammad Mohsin (22-year old from the Al-Amal neighbourhood of Khan Yunis).  The man lost control of the gun and several bullets hit the ground.  Shrapnel injured the groom in the right shoulder and 3 others:

–         Mohammad Khalel El-Zaqzouq, 25-year old resident of Khan Yunis, hit by shrapnel in the abdomen;

–         Ashraf Abdel Fattah El-Abed, 23-year old resident of El-Bureij refugee camp, hit by shrapnel in the right leg and left thigh; and

–         Naser Mustafa Hamad, 23-year old resident of El-Bureij refugee camp, hit by shrapnel in the left thigh.

The injured were taken to Naser hospital for treatment.  The injuries were minor, except for those of Zaqzouq, whose injuries were described as moderate.

PCHR expresses great concern over the misuse of weapons by armed groups and individuals, which has become an increasingly common feature of the ongoing security chaos in the OPT.  The Centre calls upon the Palestinian National Authority, represented by the Attorney-General, to investigate this crime and to bring the perpetrators to justice.