Israeli troops shot a seven-month-old Palestinian baby in the face, killing him instantly, and wounded his parents when they shot at a car in the occupied West Bank, the Palestinian Health Ministry said Saturday.
The Israeli military claimed that its soldiers shot at the vehicle perceived to be accelerating toward them near Hebron on Friday. It said an initial inquiry found that the three Palestinians wounded were uninvolved civilians.
Israeli military activity and settler violence against Palestinians have surged in the territory since the war in Gaza began in October 2023.
The baby's father, Bethlehem University Lecturer Fahd Abu Haikal, told The Associated Press that a bullet struck the windshield before piercing his right hand and striking his son and wife in the back seat Friday evening. Another bullet struck the hood, according to AP journalists who saw the car.
The bullet passed through Sam Fahd Abu Haikal's face.
