Boy, 9, paralysed for life after being shot in neck by Israeli soldiers
In a West Bank clinic, the father of a nine-year-old Palestinian boy showed us where the bullet shot by an Israeli soldier entered his son’s neck and where it left his small body through his spine.
Kareem Sharaab had been outside his home when the Israeli military entered his village in the occupied West Bank.
He’d been sent out to the shops for groceries. The short walk would change his life forever.
His grandfather, Hani, told me what happened next. “There was nothing going on then. No clashes, nothing. The kid was just playing on the road. Out of nowhere, the sound of gunfire, and the voice of children screaming out that Kareem has been injured.”
Kareem Sharaab was left paralysed when an Israeli bullet hit his spine
Hani rushed down to his grandson and carried his body hundreds of yards to an ambulance.
Paramedics fought to staunch the flow of blood and save Kareem. Kareem’s father, Shadi, showed us a video of those moments.
“The first time I saw this, I ran to the bathroom to cry. I can’t bear it. I can’t handle it. It’s too much for me,” he told me.
Kareem’s life was saved but he has been left paralysed from the waist down. He will never walk again. His brothers and sisters are traumatised by what happened, his father added.
“Look, before the incident, my children had normal lives,” Shadi said. “Today, they’re startled by sounds and terrified when they see soldiers at checkpoints. They can’t get the idea out of their minds that a soldier will always shoot at you.”
Kareem is carried by his father, Shadi, as he returns from physio treatment, while his grandfather, Hani, takes care of his wheelchair. Pic: Family handout
They are one of hundreds of families across the West Bank and East Jerusalem whose lives have been shattered by Israelis shooting their children.
The death toll of Palestinian children killed by Israel in shootings and airstrikes in the occupied West Bank has doubled since 7 October last year.
By the end of November, 170 under the age of 18 have lost their lives, according to DCI (Defense for Children International) Palestine and Save the Children.
Of those killed 70 were 15 or younger and four were below the age of nine. At least 1,400 children have reportedly been wounded.
Sky News has looked into each of the children’s deaths and compiled photos of as many of them as we could find.
Some of the children killed by Israelis in the occupied West Bank since last October’s Hamas-led attack on Israel, according to DCI Palestine
In some cases, Israelis claim the children they killed had been threatening soldiers with knives, guns or petrol bombs.
In a statement, the Israel Defence Forces told Sky News that Palestinian minors in the West Bank “often participate in violent disturbances and hostile activities against security forces and Israeli citizens. In addition, terrorist organisations operate and embed themselves within the civilian population, using civilians as human shields”.
All cases involving children or civilians being killed, the IDF told us, are “thoroughly investigated”. Nine-year-old Kareem’s case is still under investigation, nine months after it happened.
The Israeli military has strict open-fire regulations. Soldiers can only use lethal fire in life-threatening situations and only then as a last resort and are instructed to shoot at the legs if possible. However, Israeli soldiers are rarely prosecuted or convicted for breaching those regulations despite the high death toll.
We went to Jenin to find a family mourning one of Israel’s latest child victims. The mother of 14-year-old Rayan Al Sayed, Reem, told us of their loss.
“I miss him every hour,” she told me. “I haven’t slept in two days. Every night I feel him. He comes home to me, and says ‘mom I’m here’, ‘mom I can see you’. When I pray, I see him in front of me, smiling, bless him.”
Rayan’s uncle, Fuad, took us to the place where Israelis shot him twice, very close to the family home.
Rayan Al Sayed, 14, was shot dead by Israeli forces
The Israeli military said soldiers had been attacked with explosives and firearms.
In a statement, they said: “During security forces’ activities to arrest a wanted individual in Jenin on 14 October 2024, terrorists opened fire at our forces from several locations, who responded with gunfire, and two armed terrorists were neutralised.
“During the operation, a terrorist threw explosives at our forces, who responded with fire, resulting in identified hits. The circumstances of the case are under investigation.”
Palestinian eyewitnesses we spoke to in Jenin denied the Israelis came under fire and said Rayan was unarmed and not throwing stones or anything else.
“One jeep started firing,” one eyewitness told us. “Then the other did as well. Both did. The one over there fired directly at us here, hitting the boy in his chest and neck.”
Rayan with his father
Rayan’s friends picked him up in their arms and rushed him away, taking him to hospital where he died of his wounds not long after arriving, video footage shot by an eyewitness showed. The footage did not appear to show anyone was armed.
Itamar Ben Gvir, the Israeli national security minister and far-right extremist, has called for Israeli military regulations to be relaxed to allow soldiers to shoot any “potential” threat, including stone throwers.
Its military insists the rules have not been changed but in practice more and more children and teenagers are being shot, many dying from their injuries, whether they are throwing stones or not.
Kareem next to one of his siblings. Pic: Supplied by family
Alison Griffin, head of conflict and humanitarian campaigns at Save the Children UK, said the deaths of Palestinian children in the West Bank and East Jerusalem since October 2023 highlight “a highly concerning and ongoing pattern of violence against children in the context of occupation”.
She added: “As an occupying power, Israel has clear obligations under international humanitarian and human rights law to protect civilians, particularly children who are entitled to special protections.
“The use of disproportionate and excessive force, especially against children, constitutes a grave violation of these laws.
“The vast majority of these children are being killed without any clear justification… it is essential that independent investigations are carried out to hold those responsible accountable.”
Israel has shown little respect for international borders since becoming the unrivalled military hegemon of the Middle East. Today that meant an Israeli airstrike on a government building in Damascus.
Israel says its attack on a Syrian defence ministry facility was intended as a warning to the new government: stay out of the part of southern Syria we have occupied or else.
Israel has moved into parts of the south of the country, built military bases and declared a line of control.
Smoke rises from an Israeli airstrike that hit the Syrian Defence Ministry in Damascus. Pic: AP
On Monday, Syrian tanks heading south to try and restore order following an outbreak of factional fighting were attacked by Israeli warplanes.
“The presence of such vehicles in southern Syria could pose a threat to Israel,” stated the Israel Defence Forces.
In reality, Syria’s ageing tanks pose minimal threat to Israel’s state-of-the art military.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Syrian presenter interrupted by Israeli airstrike
The Syrian armour was attacked as it entered the area around Sweida in the Druze heartland of southern Syria following factional fighting there.
The flare-up reportedly began with clashes between Bedouin and Druze groups that ended in scores killed.
The background to the escalation is complicated.
At least three Druze militia groups are divided in their loyalties to different religious leaders and differ over how they should respond to calls to assimilate into the new post-revolutionary Syria.
Druze from Syria and Israel protest on the Israeli-Syrian border.
Pic: AP
Read more:
30 dead as armed groups clash in Syria
UK restores diplomatic ties with Syria
Israel is becoming more and more involved in Syria’s internecine war and says it will remain there indefinitely “to protect our communities and thwart any threat”.
Its critics say Israel is operating a policy of divide and rule in Syria, weakening the fledgling government and creating a buffer zone to protect the border with the Golan Heights – originally Syrian territory that it has occupied and annexed for almost half a century.
Since the fall of the Assad regime, Israel has used airstrikes to destroy of much of Syria’s military capability weakening its ability to impose control on outlying regions. This makes it more not less likely Israel will have a volatile unstable state on its northern border.
Syrian security forces walk along a street in the southern Druze city of Sweida. Pic: Reuters
America and European powers have chosen to normalise relations with the new government in Damascus and lift sanctions.
In contrast Israel has occupied its territory, bombed its military and today hit one of its government buildings in the capital with an airstrike.
Since its crushing military campaigns against Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran, Israel has emerged as the unchallenged military power of the region.
There is however a limit to what blunt force can achieve alone. It requires diplomacy to achieve lasting gains and Israel’s repeated assaults on multiple neighbours combined with its relentless campaign in Gaza are winning it few friends in the region.
Israeli airstrikes have targeted the Syrian military headquarters in Damascus amid renewed clashes in the country.
The gate of the Ministry of Defence in the Syrian capital was targeted by two warning missiles from an Israeli reconnaissance aircraft.
State-owned Elekhbariya TV said the Israeli strike had wounded two civilians, the Reuters news agency reported.
Smoke rises from Syria’s defence ministry building in Damascus. Pic: Reuters
It came as Israeli airstrikes targeted security and army vehicles in the southern city of Sweida, where the Druze faith is one of the major religious groups – marking the third consecutive day Israel has struck Syrian forces.
The Israeli military confirmed it had “struck the entrance gate” in Damascus – and that it would be monitoring “actions being taken against Druze civilians in southern Syria”.
The Israeli airstrike targeted Syria’s military headquarters. Pic: AP
Why Israel is getting involved in Syria’s internal fighting
Israel has shown little respect for international borders since becoming the unrivalled military hegemon of the Middle East. Today that meant an Israeli airstrike on a government building in Damascus.
Israel says its attack on a Syrian defence ministry facility was intended as a warning to the new government: stay out of the part of southern Syria we have occupied or else.
Israel has moved into parts of the south of the country, built military bases and declared a line of control.
On Monday, Syrian tanks heading south to try and restore order following an outbreak of factional fighting were attacked by Israeli warplanes.
“The presence of such vehicles in southern Syria could pose a threat to Israel,” stated the Israel Defence Forces.
In reality, Syria’s ageing tanks pose minimal threat to Israel’s state-of-the art military.
Local media said Sweida and nearby villages were coming under heavy artillery and mortar fire on Wednesday, according to Reuters.
The clashes marked the collapse of a ceasefire between Syrian government forces and Druze armed groups, with Israel also warning it would increase its involvement.
Syria said its forces had responded to being fired upon. Pic: Reuters
Israel said it was acting to protect the Druze groups through its attacks on convoys of Syrian forces.
Syria blamed militias in Sweida for violating a ceasefire agreement which had only been reached on Tuesday.
Read more from Sky News:
‘My family is finished’: Afghan man feels betrayed
Harry follows in Diana’s charity footsteps
A statement from its defence ministry said: “Military forces continue to respond to the source of fire inside the city of Sweida, while adhering to rules of engagement to protect residents, prevent harm, and ensure the safe return of those who left the city back to their homes.”
Israel’s defence minister Israel Katz said the military will continue to strike Syrian forces until they withdraw and should “leave Druze alone”, according to local reports.
At least 20 people have been killed in an incident in Khan Younis, according to the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), an Israel and US-backed organisation.
In a statement, it said 19 people were trampled and one was stabbed in a surge “driven by agitators in the crowd”.
“We have credible reason to believe that elements within the crowd – armed and affiliated with Hamas – deliberately fomented the unrest,” it said.
“For the first time since operations began, GHF personnel identified multiple firearms in the crowd, one of which was confiscated. An American worker was also threatened with a firearm by a member of the crowd during the incident.”
It provided no evidence to support the claim.
The Hamas-run Gaza health ministry claimed 21 Palestinians were killed, “including 15 who died of suffocation as a result of tear gas fired at the starving people and the subsequent stampede” at the GHF site.
Read analysis: Deaths go up when aid sites open
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Gaza deaths increase when aid sites open
The statement is unusual for the GHF, as the controversial group, which has been rejected by the United Nations and other aid groups, rarely acknowledges trouble at its distribution sites.
The GHF began distributing food packages in Gaza at the end of May, after Israel eased its 11-week blockade of aid into the territory.
It has four distribution centres, three of which are in the southern Gaza Strip. The sites, kept off-limits to independent media, are guarded by private security contractors and located in zones where the Israeli military operates.
Palestinian witnesses say Israeli forces have repeatedly opened fire towards crowds of people going to receive aid.
The Israeli military says it has fired warning shots at people who have behaved in what it says is a suspicious manner. It says its forces operate near the aid sites to stop supplies from falling into the hands of militants.
After the deaths of hundreds of Palestinians trying to reach the aid hubs, the UN has called the GHF’s aid model “inherently unsafe” and a violation of humanitarian impartiality standards.
In response, a GHF spokesperson said: “The fact is the most deadly attacks on aid sites have been linked to UN convoys.”
People carry distributed aid supplies in Khan Yunis, southern Gaza. File pic: AP
The GHF says it has delivered more than 70 million meals to Gazans in five weeks and claims other humanitarian groups – which refuse to work with the GHF – had “nearly all of their aid looted” by Hamas or criminal gangs.
Read more:
Medical charity warns acute malnutrition at all-time high
UN data on Gaza deaths ‘disinformation’, claims GHF chief
Since the GHF sites began operating, more than 875 people have been killed while receiving aid, both at GHF distribution points or elsewhere, according to the UN human rights office and the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry.
At least 674 of those have been killed in the vicinity of aid distribution sites run by the GHF.
-
Sports3 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports1 year agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports2 years agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports4 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Sports2 years agoButton battles heat exhaustion in NASCAR debut
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment2 years agoGame-changing Lectric XPedition launched as affordable electric cargo bike