A Palestinian man was fatally shot by Israeli forces on Sunday at a concrete barrier separating the occupied West Bank from Jerusalem, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. The incident occurred as the man attempted to cross into Israel in search of employment amid a worsening economic situation in the West Bank.
The ministry identified the deceased as 26-year-old Imad Haroun Ishtayeh from Salem town, east of Nablus. It stated that Israeli forces shot him in the thigh in al-Ram town, and he was pronounced dead at the Palestinian Medical Complex in Ramallah.
Footage circulating on social media showed individuals carrying his body and descending a ladder placed against the wire-topped barrier, while traffic continued to pass by and a horn blared in the background. Israeli police did not immediately respond to inquiries regarding the shooting.
Ishtayeh was attempting to cross from the West Bank to Israel. Numerous individuals have been shot while trying to cross the barrier, including a 44-year-old father who was killed earlier this month.
According to a relative, Nasser Ishtayeh, Imad previously operated a poultry slaughterhouse in his home village of Salem, financially supporting his ill father. However, business declined as an economic crisis hit the West Bank, prompting him to seek work in Israel. On his first attempt on Saturday, Israeli security was tight, Nasser said. After spending the night with other Palestinians hoping to cross, he tried again on Sunday morning and was shot. "He was directly shot with live bullets and died at the hospital," Nasser told The Associated Press.
An increasing number of Palestinians from the West Bank have attempted to enter Israel illegally for work in recent years. Tens of thousands of Palestinians had held Israeli work permits, but access was sharply restricted after the attack by Hamas-led militants on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, which sparked the war in Gaza.
Since then, unemployment in the West Bank has surged amid an economic slowdown. According to the Palestinian official WAFA news agency, citing the General Federation of Palestinian Trade Unions, around 50 workers have been killed by Israeli fire, and over 38,000 have been arrested, though many were later released.
