Hundreds of Palestinians gathered in the occupied West Bank town of Beit Ur al-Tahta on Wednesday, September 1, to mourn the shooting death of Raed Jadallah, 39, by Israeli soldiers the previous evening.

The Palestinian Health Ministry and local sources allege that Israeli forces gunned down Jadallah from afar as the victim approached the western entrance of his village and left him to bleed to death. Jadallah was returning to his home in Beit Ur al-Tahta after a day of work in Jerusalem. According to the Beit Ur Municipality, he was crossing one of the military-controlled crossing points when he was fatally shot by the Israeli military.

Relatives and friends mourn over the body of 39-year-old Raed Jadallah, killed by Israeli occupation soldiers near the West Bank town of Beit Ur al-Tahta on Tuesday evening, August 31, 2021. Jadallah, the father of 5, had been returning home from a day of work in Jerusalem when he was gunned down and left to bleed to death. (Photo: WAFA)

Jadallah’s friend Ibrahim Zaki told Palestinian Authority Television that the victim had told him that he would be home by 9:15 pm for dinner. When Jadallah failed to show, Zaki went looking for him along with Jadullah’s son. Jadallah, a resident of East Jerusalem who had moved to the West Bank, is survived by his wife and five children, the Arabic-language daily newspaper Al-Quds reported.

A spokesperson at the Palestinian Authority’s foreign ministry condemned the shooting as a “hideous crime” in a statement released on Wednesday. According to this ministry source, Jadallah’s death “is the latest in a series of field executions perpetrated by the occupation forces deployed at the [Israeli] checkpoints of death,” According to the United Nations, from the beginning of 2021, 61 West Bank Palestinians have been killed during confrontations with Israeli soldiers.

Palestinian Protestor Killed by Israeli Gunfire along Gaza Border

On Thursday night, September 2, Ahmad Mustafa Saleh, 26, was killed by Israeli gunfire along the Gaza border near Jabalya in the northern Strip, Palestinian health officials announced.

Saleh was one of hundreds of Palestinians who took part that day in protests held at five locations, demanding an end to Israel’s 14-year blockade of Gaza.

The territory’s Hamas rulers have organized a series of similar protests over the past two weeks. In some cases, they have turned violent, with the crowds burning tires and hurling explosives towards Israeli soldiers.

Related: 11 Palestinians Wounded by Israeli Fire During Gaza Border Protests