Israeli troops kill 14-year-old Palestinian boy in West Bank village of Burqa

What happened in Burqa

Late on Monday, 9 November, Israeli soldiers carried out an operation in Burqa, a village near Nablus in the northern West Bank, and opened fire. The Palestinian health ministry says a 14-year-old boy was shot dead by Israeli forces during the raid. It said Israeli authorities were withholding the body, while DPA reported that soldiers had taken it away with them. Wafa reports that a 17-year-old was wounded by gunfire in the abdomen and pelvis, and a 19-year-old in one hand. The Palestine Red Crescent Society says its teams treated two people with gunshot injuries and took them to hospital, but Israeli units did not let them reach a third wounded person and briefly held three volunteer paramedics. Wafa also reports that the boy's father was detained along with a second person.

The military account

The Israel Defense Forces say soldiers identified several people who intended to throw stones at a road used by Israeli vehicles, and fired at them. In a statement posted on social media, the army described the operation as aimed at preventing stone-throwing and terror incidents near Burqa. The army told AFP that stones had recently been thrown at Israeli vehicles in the area. The statement does not refer directly to the boy's death. The army's account of the gunfire reads:

“The forces responded with gunfire to neutralise the threat and several hits were confirmed.”

Casualty counts from different sources

Figures for the wider conflict differ by source and measurement date. AFP says that Israeli soldiers have killed at least 1,116 Palestinians in the West Bank since October 2023, civilians and armed people included. Citing Israeli official data, AFP also says at least 51 Israelis died in Palestinian attacks or clashes over the same period. The UN figure reported by Al Jazeera is at least 1,143 Palestinians killed in the West Bank since 7 October 2023, including 250 children, and that count also includes people killed by settlers. B'Tselem says the Israeli army killed at least 241 minors in the West Bank from 7 October 2023 until June 2026. These counts use different scopes and dates, so they should not be added together.

Settler violence and the wider picture

Settler violence forms the wider backdrop to the shooting. The Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED) reckons 2026 is on course to become the most violent year for settler attacks since it started tracking the territory about ten years ago. July alone brought 11 deaths across four episodes in which armed settlers acted together with Israeli forces. The worst settler attacks have concentrated in Hebron, Ramallah, Nablus, Jenin and el-Bireh. Israel occupied the West Bank in the 1967 war, and peace talks have been stalled since 2014. Conditions worsened after the government led by Benjamin Netanyahu took office in December 2022, a coalition that includes far-right ministers. Around three million Palestinians and roughly 700,000 Jews now live in the West Bank.