The United Nations Office at Geneva
Multimedia Newsroom
“This week saw further violence in the occupied West Bank, raising concerns about the possible resumption of unlawful targeted killings by Israeli security forces,” Shamdasani said.
“On Sunday, 23 October, a reportedly senior member of “the Lion’s Den” - a loose group of young armed Palestinian men – was killed in the old city of Nablus, apparently when a boobytrapped motorcycle detonated near him,” the spokesperson said.
“During operations on Tuesday, 25 October against “the Lion’s Den” members of the Israeli security forces shot dead three men in the old city of Nablus. One of the men was reportedly armed, while two others are reported to have been unarmed. Also on Tuesday, another man who was reportedly a senior member of the same group, was shot dead. Yet another man was killed when the car he was in exploded right outside of the old city,” she said.
Earlier, on 25 September, Israeli security forces opened fire on and killed a member of “the Lion’s Den” who was riding a motorcycle in Nablus. The circumstances of all these incidents are being verified by Human Rights Office.
“At least 118 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli security forces in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem this year, including 26 children and five women. Three Palestinians, including one child, were killed by settlers or settlement guards, while another child was killed by either a settler or by Israeli security forces. Four members of the Israeli security forces and one settlement guard have been killed by Palestinians in the West Bank,” Shamdasani said.
The United Nations Human Rights Office recalls that international human rights law only permits the use of firearms when absolutely necessary, when there is an imminent threat to life or of serious injury.
“Any killing resulting from the use of firearms or targeting of individuals who do not present an imminent threat to life or of serious injury, may amount to extrajudicial executions – an egregious violation of the right to life – and willful killings, under the Fourth Geneva Convention, which is applicable in the entire occupied Palestinian territory,” she said in conclusion.
For more information and media requests, please contact:
In Geneva: Ravina Shamdasani - + 41 22 917 9169 / ravina.shamdasani@un.org Jeremy Laurence + +41 22 917 9383 / jeremy.laurence@un.org or Marta Hurtado - + 41 22 917 9466 / marta.hurtadogomez@un.org In Nairobi Seif Magango - +254 788 343 897 / seif.magango@un.org
Tag and share - Twitter: @UNHumanRights and Facebook: unitednationshumanrights
- Exterior shot: Palais des Nations, Geneva.
- Wide shot: wide shot press conference
- Soundbite (English)—Ravina Shamdasani, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “This week saw further violence in the occupied West Bank, raising concerns about the possible resumption of unlawful targeted killings by Israeli security forces,” Shamdasani said.
- Cut aways: briefing room
- Soundbite (English)—Ravina Shamdasani, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “On Sunday, 23 October, a reportedly senior member of “the Lion’s Den” - a loose group of young armed Palestinian men – was killed in the old city of Nablus, apparently when a boobytrapped motorcycle detonated near him.”
- Cut aways: briefing room
- Soundbite (English)—Ravina Shamdasani, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “During operations on Tuesday, 25 October against “the Lion’s Den” members of the Israeli security forces shot dead three men in the old city of Nablus. One of the men was reportedly armed, while two others are reported to have been unarmed. Also on Tuesday, another man who was reportedly a senior member of the same group, was shot dead. Yet another man was killed when the car he was in exploded right outside of the old city.”
- Cut aways: briefing room
- Soundbite (English)—Ravina Shamdasani, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “At least 118 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli security forces in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem this year, including 26 children and five women. Three Palestinians, including one child, were killed by settlers or settlement guards, while another child was killed by either a settler or by Israeli security forces. Four members of the Israeli security forces and one settlement guard have been killed by Palestinians in the West Bank.”
- Cut aways: briefing room
- Soundbite (English)—Ravina Shamdasani, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “Any killing resulting from the use of firearms or targeting of individuals who do not present an imminent threat to life or of serious injury, may amount to extrajudicial executions – an egregious violation of the right to life – and willful killings, under the Fourth Geneva Convention, which is applicable in the entire occupied Palestinian territory.”
- Cut aways: briefing room
Similar Stories
1
1
1
Edited News | WHO
No evacuation order given before Kamal Adwan Hospital strike, says WHO
One of the last partially functional health centres in northern Gaza was reportedly hit again overnight into Friday by several strikes, leaving four health workers among the casualties and the dead, according to the UN World Health Organization (WHO).
2
1
2
Edited News , Press Conferences | OCHA
More than 280,000 people have been uprooted in northwest Syria in a matter of days following the sudden and massive offensive into Government-controlled areas led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which is sanctioned by the Security Council as a terrorist group.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk has called on the Georgian authorities to respect and protect the rights to freedoms of expression and peaceful assembly following several nights of protests that were marred by violence, and dispersed using disproportionate, and in some cases unnecessary, force by the police in the capital, Tbilisi.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said today he was extremely concerned about the recent escalation in hostilities in northwest Syria, which further compounds the suffering endured by millions of civilians.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , WHO , OCHA
Syria escalation: Civilians face deadly attacks, health care in distress and aid access compromised
The ongoing escalation of violence in northwest Syria linked to the wider conflict in Gaza and Lebanon has left civilians dead and injured, hospitals “overwhelmed” and attacks on healthcare on the rise, the UN warned on Tuesday.
2
1
4
Press Conferences , Edited News | OCHA
Multiple unending conflicts, climate change and a glaring disregard for long-established international humanitarian law are set to leave a staggering 305 million people in need of lifesaving assistance next year, the UN’s top aid official warned on Wednesday.
Embargo Wednesday, 4 December 2024 at 0600 CET / 0000 ET
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
The UN Rights Office on Friday warned about the plight of civilians in Ukraine after further attacks on the country’s energy infrastructure.
1
1
1
Edited News | ITU
An international panel has been set up to protect undersea communications cables that are crucial for international trade and security, the UN International Telecommunication Union (ITU) said on Friday. The creation of the International Advisory Body for Submarine Cable Resilience comes amid an ongoing investigation into the severing of two fibre optic cables in the Baltic Sea, in less than 24 hours between 17 and 18 November.
2
1
2
Press Conferences , Edited News | ITU
An estimated 5.5 billion people have access to the internet in 2024, an increase of 227 million people based on revised estimates for 2023, the UN specialized agency for telecommunications, ITU, said on Wednesday.
2
1
2
Press Conferences , Edited News | UNAIDS
Launch of World AIDS Day Report 2024—Take The Rights Path
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
A joint report issued this morning by the UN Human Rights Office and the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) paints a disturbing picture of the media landscape in the country since the Taliban takeover. UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk says.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
UN human rights chief Volker Türk lent his weight to growing ceasefire calls in Lebanon on Tuesday, amid reports that the senior Israeli cabinet members were due to meet on a deal to end more than a year of conflict with Hezbollah militants, sparked by the war in Gaza