At approximately 18:00 on Wednesday 10 September Israeli special forces entered the Mount Gezzim area of Nablus to arrest a Palestinian they accused of owning a weapon. Following the arrest and detention of two Palestinians, Israeli soldiers then shot multiple times and killed an unarmed man nearby.
The Israeli army had been in neighbouring homes the previous night watching the area and on the evening of the 18 August, approximately 100 soldiers and several jeeps surrounded the area shooting live ammunition and using sound bombs and tear gas in the neighbourhood. They entered the home of Jaffar Hamede Tiser Gera (22 years old) shooting open the door where his mother, father, himself and his friend Abu Jaba (22 years old) were sat ready to eat Ifta. The soldiers demanded to know where ‘Jaffar’ was and he immediately made himself known and raised his hands in the air. The soldiers then restrained and beat both Jaffar and Abu Jaba. The army then proceeded to search and ransack the home for 1 hour and no weapon was ever found.
Following their restraint and the shooting in the area, 20 year old Waled Fareed Fretekh, walked out of the steps of his home to investigate the noise. Eye witnesses then stated that without warning the soldiers shot Waled in the legs several times and when he had fallen to the ground. A friend and neighbour in a nearby house then proceeded to try to get to Waled to give him assistance but was detained by the army who threatened to shot him and beat him. Waled’s mother phoned for an ambulance and pleaded with the soldiers repeatedly to help him. This was ignored and witnesses state a soldier told her “I want your son to die here”. The friend and neighbour then managed to get to Waled a second time after the soldiers moved back around the corner. They carried him through their home and up the steps towards the pavement and awaiting ambulances. Before reaching the pavement the soldiers grabbed him and pulled him away from Waled. Waled was then left bleeding profusely from the legs on the steps.
Red Crescent ambulance volunteers were prevented from reaching Waled as the Israeli army opened fire on them with live ammunition and tear gas. Waled who lay on the steps for 90 minutes and during this time witnesses say soldiers attempted to remove the bullets from Waled’s legs with knives and witnesses state Waled was conscious and screaming from the pain. The soldiers then checked his pulse over time and after 90 minutes the army retreated with Jaffar and Abu Jaba in custody leaving Waled on the steps. The ambulance crew were then able to reach Waled who had already died due to acute loss of blood and he was taken to Rifidiya hospital in West Nablus.