Field update

Yesterday morning, a fifteen-year-old child, Nash’at Alaa’ Kaskin,
was seriously wounded, when his neighbour misfired a weapon in al-Shati’
refugee camp, in the west of Gaza City.  This
incident is demonstrative of the regular violations of rule of law, including the
misuse of weapons, which occur in the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt).

According to investigations conducted by the Palestinian Centre for
Human Rights (PCHR), at approximately 10:00 on Wednesday, 08 May 2013, Nash’at
Alaa’ Kaskin (15), from al-Shati refugee camp, in the west of Gaza City, was
admitted to Shifa hospital.  He had been
wounded by a bullet to the abdomen.  Medical
sources at the hospital described his wound as serious, and he underwent
surgery.

According to the testimony of the victim’s father to a PCHR
fieldworker,  the victim was at his
neighbour’s house when he was wounded.  The
neighbour in question is a member of a Palestinian military group.  He was cleaning his weapon when a bullet was
accidently fired and hit the boy.

Police sources stated that members of the police force made their
way to the scene immediately. They opened an investigation into the incident and
arrested the owner of the weapon.

PCHR condemns this incident, which is demonstrative of the state of
security chaos and the regular violations of the rule of law in the oPt. PCHR
calls on the Attorney General to open an independent investigation into the
incident and to bring the perpetrators to justice.