Israeli border guards on Monday shot dead one Palestinian and wounded two others at a checkpoint near East Jerusalem, radio Kol Israel reported.
Palestinian medical and security sources said Akram Dair, 40, and two other Palestinians were allegedly heading to East Jerusalem for prayers in a car before dawn on Monday when border guards near Ramallah opened fire on the vehicle. One passenger was killed, another one was injured and the driver managed to flee the scene. The wounded man has been hospitalized.
Israeli Border Guard spokesman Shai Hakimi told media that the car rammed through the a-Zaim checkpoint at high speed and tried to run over the officers who ordered the driver to stop.
A Palestinian police source told Ynetnews.com portal that “the car had entered the wrong lane and was backing up to enter the right one when the border guards mistakenly thought it was trying to hit them and opened fire.”
West Bank Palestinians do not have the right to enter Israeli territory, including East Jerusalem which was annexed by the Jewish state, without a permit from Israeli authorities.
