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Israel - Palestinian Territories

Israeli minister's nephew killed by Palestinian police officer

An Israeli minister's nephew was killed and four other Israelis wounded on Sunday when a Palestinian police officer shot at them in the West Bank town of Nablus, the Israeli army said. The shooting occurred early in the morning near Joseph's Tomb, a shrine under Palestinian control which is off-limits to Israelis except on army-organised, escorted trips.

Reuters/Mohamad Torokman
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After the shooting, Israeli military and police surrounded the tomb and clashes broke out with dozens of Palestinians, who burnt tyres at the site. Troops fired in the air and threw sound bombs in an attempt to disperse the crowd.

The dead man was 24- year-old Ben-Yosef Livnat, a father of four from Jerusalem and Israeli Culture Minister Limor Livnat's nephew, according to the Ynet news website.

One of the men injured in the attack suffered a gunshot wound to the stomach and was in serious condition, hospital medics said.

Palestinian officials confirmed that the shots were fired by a Palestinian police officer who opened fire "after identifying suspicious movements", an Israeli military statement said. The group – who were ultra-orthodix Hassidic Jews - visited the tomb early Sunday morning without obtaining permission to go into the Palestinian-controlled area.

Ultra-Orthodox Jews frequently enter the shrine despite a military ban, and the threat of attacks and prosecution for those attempting to do so without permission.

The statement said Israeli military and civil administration officials would meet Palestinian security officials in coming hours "in order to examine the incident".

Palestinian security officials and the governor of Nablus have declined to comment on the report for now.

Many Jews believe the tomb to be the final resting place of the biblical Joseph, while Muslims believe that an Islamic cleric, Sheikh Yussef (Joseph) Dawiqat, was buried there two centuries ago.
 

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