Earlier this morning, Israeli occupation forces opened fire at a civilian car transporting Palestinian workers near the village of Kharras in the Hebron District. As these workers were riding to their workplaces inside the Green Line, Israeli occupation forces opened fire towards their taxicab indiscriminately and without any provocation, injuring four civilians, one of them critically. The incident occurred some three kilometers away from the Green Line, which separate the West Bank from Israel proper.

Mr. Ali Qudeimat, Director of the Ministry of Labor’s Office in Hebron, told Palestine Media Center (PMC), “At four in the morning, I heard gunshots coming from the entrance of my village, Kharras. Our village, which lies northwest of Hebron City, is considered a main entry for trucks and workers from the area into the Green Line”. Mr. Qudeimat added, “When I approached the checkpoint at the entrance of Kharras, I found four workers, apparently injured by Israeli fire. In fact, Israeli occupation soldiers had even interrogated them before allowing me and other village residents to transport them to the Hospital”.  

Sources in Al-Ahli Hospital in Hebron City told the PMC that 21 year-old Ahmed Malash was shot in the abdomen. They added that after being operated on, Ahmed is now reported in stable yet critical condition. The other victims were Hamad Malash, who was injured in the thigh and his brother Mohamed, who was injured by shrapnel in the back. Riyadh Awadh was injured in the leg with shrapnel. All are in stable condition. 

Mr. Ahmed Abdel Rahman, Cabinet Secretary General staunchly condemned the latest Israeli crime in Hebron. He considered this attack an additional crime against the Palestinian People. He further stressed that Ariel Sharon’s government bears full responsibility for this attack, “which is representative of the state-terrorism exercised against the Palestinian People. This state-terrorism contradicts all the exerted efforts to strengthen the ceasefire between both parties”.

Mr. Abdel Rahman stressed, “The present Israeli government knows only how to live at war. For that reason, it strives to escalate the situation and derail any efforts aimed at establishing calm. Stabilizing the ceasefire and moving on to the political agenda would create conflicts within Sharon’s coalition, especially when considering the pressures that the extremist rightwing parties exert on Sharon”.

The Secretary General expounded, “This crime, like the continuous others that have been perpetrated against Palestinian civilians, is an indication that Ariel Sharon refuses all efforts to stop the cycle of violence and restore calm in the area. For that reason, it is now incumbent upon the international community to work more effectively in exerting far more pressure on the Israeli government in order to reduce tensions in the area and to restore calm”.