Israeli soldiers shoot dead 21-year-old at checkpoint at close range, body riddled with bullets

Ma'an – Israeli forces on Sunday shot dead a Palestinian man at Hamra checkpoint east of Nablus in the northern West Bank.

Sources in the Palestinian Red Crescent identified the man as Tubas-resident Mahmoud Muhammad Dharaghma, 21, and said his body was riddled with bullets.

Eyewitness Dr Hatim Froukh said Dharaghma was shot at close range by three soldiers.

"I was standing at the eastern side of the checkpoint waiting for the bus when I heard screaming. As I turned, I saw a young man wearing jeans and a brown jacket and raising his hands. Two male soldiers and a female soldier were three meters away from the young man and started shooting at him," Froukh said.

Other witnesses said they saw Dharaghma trying to approach the checkpoint with a Coca-Cola can in his hand. As he came close to a female soldier, witnesses said, she started shouting at him, and immediately two other soldiers showered him with gunshots.

An Israeli military spokeswoman said soldiers shot dead a man because he approached the checkpoint in an unauthorized lane, and was holding a glass bottle.

A female soldier ordered him to stop, and when he continued to proceed, soldiers "operated according to IDF rules of engagement" and opened fire, the spokeswoman said.