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Palestinians protest Israeli settlers' killing of toddler

A young Palestinian looks on during clashes with Israeli forces on a street leading to the town of Duma, the West Bank, on August 1, 2015, following a demonstration in reaction to the death of a Palestinian toddler burnt to death in an arson attack in the occupied territories. ©AFP

Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and besieged Gaza Strip have held protests to condemn the killing of a toddler by Israeli settlers southeast of the city of Nablus.

According to reports on Saturday, Palestinians in the village of Duma, southeast of Nablus in the West Bank, staged a protest against the killing of Ali Saad Dawabsha. Israeli forces clashed with the protesters firing rubber bullets and tear gas, and injuring dozens of protesters.

A similar protest was held by Palestinians in the West Bank town of Kafar Qaddum, west of Nablus. Clashes erupted near the town, where Israeli forces used stun grenades to disperse the angry crowd.

The Palestinian baby was burnt to death in the early hours of July 31, when the Israeli settlers, wearing black balaclavas, smashed a window and threw a Molotov cocktail into the parents’ bedroom while they were asleep. Other members of the family were severely injured in the incident.

Palestinians in the Israeli blockaded Gaza Strip also protested the killing of the toddler with children in Gaza City holding a candlelight vigil in memory of the 18-month-old baby.

Palestinian children hold a candlelight vigil in memory of Ali Saad Dawabsha, the Palestinian toddler who was burned to death in the West Bank, during a protest in Gaza City on August 1, 2015. ©AFP

Palestinians also gathered at the Square of the Unknown Soldier in Gaza City and voiced their solidarity with the victim’s family.

One day after the arson attack in the West Bank, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas tasked the Palestinian Foreign Ministry with preparing a lawsuit for submission to the International Criminal Court (ICC) over the death of the toddler. Abbas, who has been reportedly asked by Israeli officials not to file the complaint, said Saturday that he doubted Israel could provide “true justice” in the case.

The United Nations also reacted to the killing, with UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon describing the killing of the Palestinian toddler as a “terrorist act.”

In addition, the European Union urged the Israeli regime to demonstrate “zero tolerance” for the persisting settler violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, adding that the “cold-blooded killing of the Palestinian toddler… highlights the urgent need for a political solution of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.”

Various Palestinian factions have also voiced outrage at the killing, calling for appropriate measures to stop the recurring settler acts of violence.

According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, Israeli settlers have carried out at least 120 attacks on Palestinians in East al-Quds (Jerusalem) and the West Bank since the beginning of 2015.


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