Israel committed war crimes against Palestinians: Hamas

An Islamic Hamas movement spokesman accused Israel on Sunday of committing "war crimes" against young men in Gaza on Friday, killing seven and wounding 90 others.

Sami Abu Zuhri said in an emailed press statement that "it is obvious that the Israeli occupation soldiers were using a special kind of gunshots that only kills and all the casualties were either shot in the head or the neck."

"These war crimes were clear following the Israeli occupation soldiers' acts of executing young men and young women in the field; not only in the Gaza Strip but also in the West Bank and in Jerusalem," said Abu Zuhri.

On Friday, seven Palestinian young men were shot dead and around 90 injured during clashes between them and Israeli soldiers stationed on the border between Gaza Strip and Israel, according to Palestinian medics.

"The silence of the world towards these crimes is condemned and this silence means that the world legalizes these criminal practices," he said, adding that "this obliges us to do everything possible to defend our people."

Abu Zuhri's statements were made as the Israeli police announced earlier that a 16-year-old teenager was shot dead by Israeli police gunfire near Damascus Gate in the old city of Jerusalem.

The police said the boy was killed after he stabbed two Israelis, and wounded them, one was moderately injured. Earlier on Saturday, two Palestinian young men died of wounds in both Gaza and Jerusalem.

Medical officials said 17 Palestinians, 10 in the West Bank and seven in the Gaza Strip, were killed and more than 1,000 injured in the last 10 days of tension between Israel and the Palestinians. Endit