June 11, 2023
Two Citizens, Including Police Officer, Killed in Two Separate Incidents in West Bank and Gaza Strip
Two Citizens, Including Police Officer, Killed in Two Separate Incidents in West Bank and Gaza Strip

Ref: 64/2023

Date: 11 June 2023

Time: 12:00

Yesterday in the evening, two persons, including a police officer, were killed.  The police officer was killed during a law enforcement mission in Nuseirat refugee camp while the other was civilian shot dead on grounds of a family dispute that occurred in Jenin refugee camp in the West Bank, where two other persons were injured as well.

The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) is alarmed by the escalating killings and assault on the rule of law and calls on the competent authorities to take the necessary action to cease the state of misuse of firearms and instantly impose the rule of law in order to maintain civil peace.

According to PCHR’s follow-up, in the first incident, police officer Khaled Mohammed Mahmoud Mesleh (27), from Nuseirat refugee camp, was shot dead on Saturday morning,10 June 2023, during a law enforcement mission to capture a person from Abu Ghoula area in western Nuseirat. According to the police, at approximately 09:30 on Saturday, 10 June 2023, four law enforcement officers from Nuseirat Police Station headed in a police SUV to 33-year-old ‘Issam Suliman al-Nabaheen’s house in Abu Ghoula area, western Nuseirat in the central Gaza Strip upon a prosecution’s order to arrest the latter on criminal grounds. When the force arrived in the area, they found al-Nabaheen in front of his house. While trying to capture al-Nabahin, police officer Mesleh, who was around 6 meters away from al-Nabaheen, talked with him to convince him to surrender, but the wanted person fired 3 live bullets from his pistol at the police officer, wounding him with a live bullet in his abdomen. The police officer was evacuated in a serious condition to al-Aqsa Hospital in Dir al-Balah, where he was pronounced dead.

Later in the evening, the police announced that they captured the wanted person.

In Jenin refugee camp, yesterday at around 17:00, Khalil Misbah Mousa (43) and his brother Sari (38) were shot by unknown gunmen near the camp’s entrance. As a result, Khalil was injured with 4 bullets in different parts of his body while Sari was shot with a live bullet in his feet. Both were taken to Jenin Governmental Hospital and Ibin Sina Hospital, where their injuries were deemed serious, and at approximately 23:00, Khalil was announced dead. Afterwards, a family dispute erupted between members of Khalil’s family and another family, whose one of its members was accused of shooting at Khalil. During the dispute, firearms were used, wounding Mohammed Ahmed Khadour (41) with a bullet in his neck.  He was evacuated to Jenin Governmental Hospital.

PCHR strongly condemns such crimes and stresses that authorities shall take necessary action and measures to end the phenomenon of possession and use of weapons to assault the rule of law.