Palestinian baby shot dead by Israeli troops in occupied West Bank

Fahd Abu Haikal shows a photo of his seven-month- old son, Sam, who was killed on Friday when Israeli soldiers fired at their car. Photograph: Mahmoud Illean/AP View image in fullscreen Fahd Abu Haikal shows a photo of his seven-month- old son, Sam, who was killed on Friday when Israeli soldiers fired at their car. Photograph: Mahmoud Illean/AP Palestinian baby shot dead by Israeli troops in occupied West Bank The seven-month-old, Sam Fahd Abu Haikal, was in his mother’s arms when soldiers fired on family in Hebron Israeli troops killed a seven-month-old Palestinian baby in the occupied West Bank and injured one of the child’s parents after opening fire on the family’s car, despite it having complied with an order to stop. Soldiers opened fire on Friday on a car carrying the infant and his parents in the Tel Rumeida area of Hebron. The seven-month-old, Sam Fahd Abu Haikal, was critically injured, evacuated in critical condition to a hospital, where he later died. His parents were also injured. The Israeli military said troops had fired at a vehicle they believed was moving towards them, but an initial inquiry found those injured were uninvolved civilians. In an interview with Israeli newspaper Haaretz , the father, Fahd Abu Haikal, a lecturer at Bethlehem University, said that “a bullet passed through his hand and struck his son, Sam, who was being held by his mother in the back seat”. Abu Haikal said the family, which also included the couple’s 11-year-old son and Abu Haikal’s mother, had been driving through Hebron on Friday evening when soldiers signalled for the vehicle to stop, he said. View image in fullscreen The family car that Sam Fahd Abu Haikal was travelling in when he was hit by Israeli gunfire in Hebron on Friday. Photograph: Mahmoud Illean/AP He said it was still daylight and that the soldier who opened fire could clearly see the occupants were a family. “The soldier signalled me to stop. I brought the car to a complete halt and raised my hands on the steering wheel. Immediately afterwards, they opened fire on the vehicle,” he told Haaretz. The Israel Defense Forces said its troops “perceived a vehicle accelerating toward them” and one of the soldiers “responded with single shots toward the vehicle”. “As a result, three Palestinians were injured and evacuated for medical treatment,” the IDF said, adding that “the incident is under review” and expressed “deep sorrow for any harm caused to uninvolved individuals”. Abu Haikal rejected the military’s account. “The soldier was about 10 metres away from me. He saw me, he saw my wife and the children,” he told Haaretz. ‘‘The windows were not tinted, it was broad daylight and everything was clear. You can’t say he didn’t see that it was a family. “I stopped as I was instructed to, and then they simply shot at the car,” he added. “There was no clear checkpoint, just soldiers standing in the street. I stopped when I was asked to, and then the shooting started,” he said. View image in fullscr