Defense minister denounces calls for Gaza review
JEBALIYA REFUGEE CAMP, Gaza Strip — Israel’s defense minister said Saturday that Hamas leaders are the “only culprits” in continued bloodshed on the Gaza border, as the European Union and a top United Nations official made new demands to investigate shootings of unarmed Palestinians by Israeli soldiers, including the killing of a 14-year-old boy.
Avigdor Lieberman’s comments on Twitter came a day after four Palestinians, including the teen, were shot and killed by Israeli army fire from across the border fence, according to Gaza health officials.
More than 150 Palestinians were wounded Friday, in the fourth round of weekly Hamas-led mass protests in the border area.
The teen, Mohammed Ayyoub, was about 150 yards from the fence when he was hit, Gaza photographer Abed Alhakeem Abu Rish said. He said the boy was about to take cover when he was shot and fell to the ground, collapsing head first. The Israeli military says it is investigating the incident.
The latest deaths brought to 32 the number of Palestinians killed by Israeli troops in protests since late March. More than 1,600 have been wounded by live rounds in the past three weeks, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.
The rising Palestinian casualty toll signaled that Israel’s military is sticking to its open-fire rules despite international criticism of the use of lethal force against unarmed protesters.
Israel has said it is defending its sovereign border, including Israeli communities on the other side. It has alleged that Hamas uses the protests as cover for attacks and for damaging the border fence.
Late Saturday, the military released photos and videos depicting what it has said it is trying to counter. In one image, young boys, under the cover of smoke, are seen charging the fence and uprooting part of it to allow for an infiltration.
The marches are part of what organizers have billed as an escalating showdown with Israel, to culminate in a mass march on May 15. The top Hamas leader, Ismail Haniyeh, said people should get ready for large crowds spilling across the border that day.
The latest killings sparked new demands by a senior U.N. official and by the E.U. for an investigation.
Nikolay Mladenov, a top U.N. envoy in the region, said on Twitter that it is “outrageous to shoot at children.”