(20. Mai 2014) On Thursday, 15 May 2014, four Palestinians were shot with live ammunition in the West Bank town of Bitunya, close to Ofer Prison, during a demonstration marking Nakba Day. Two of them, both minors, died of their wounds: Nadim Siyam Nawarah, 17, from Ramallah, and Muhammad Mahmoud Salameh (Abu Daher), 17, from the village of al-Mazra‘ah al-Qibliyah. Muhammad ‚Azzah, 15, also a minor, was hospitalized in the Intensive Care Unit in Ramallah, where he is recovering from his wounds. The fourth victim, a 23-year-old who wished to remain unnamed, was lightly injured. All four were injured in the upper torso: Nawarah and ‚Azzah were struck in the chest, Salameh was struck in the back, and the fourth man was struck below his left elbow.

In response, the IDF Spokesperson stated that army forces operating in the area that day had used only crowd control means, and not live ammunition. B‘Tselem‘s investigation refuted this version, finding strong evidence that live ammunition was used and that the fire hit the upper torsos of all four victims. The investigation, compounded by security camera footage of the incident, indicate that the circumstances of the incident in no way justified use of live fire. These findings raise grave suspicion that the killing was willful.