Israeli army uses wounded Palestinian as human shield in Jenin

A gunshot-wounded Palestinian with blood stains all over his body was tied to the bonnet of an armoured vehicle leading a convoy in the streets of Jenin in the northern West Bank as a "human shield," a video went viral on Saturday shows.

In the video, Israeli military vehicles can be seen in a street in Jenin, with a hapless wounded individual tied to the bonnet with a rope in a lying position, with bloodstains from army gunfire visible all over his body. Palestinian ambulances drive past without being allowed to reach him.

Eyewitnesses told Anadolu Agency that the incident occurred in Jenin's Jabariyat neighbourhood after Israeli forces besieged a house, suggesting that "the army used the wounded person as a human shield to exit the area without being exposed to explosives or gunfire from resistance fighters."

According to witnesses, the army later handed over the wounded person to Palestinian Red Crescent Society teams, who transported him to a nearby hospital for treatment.

They said his bullet injury was not life-threatening and only affected his torso.

Palestinian Prisoners Club Director Abdullah al-Zagari told Anadolu, "What happened is another scene of the daily crimes committed by the Israeli occupation (forces) against the Palestinian people, particularly against those who are in custody."

Al-Zagari blamed the crime on "the occupation (Israeli forces), in addition to the silent international community that has not taken action to stop these crimes."

Tensions have been high across the occupied West Bank since Israel launched a deadly military offensive against Gaza, which has killed more than 37,500 victims since October 7.

At least 553 Palestinians have since been killed including 133 children and nearly 5,200 injured by Israeli army fire in the West Bank, according to the Health Ministry.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, whose latest ruling ordered Tel Aviv to immediately halt its military operation in Rafah in the southern Gaza, where over a million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.