Israeli troops kill two Palestinians after they appear to surrender

Video has emerged showing Israeli security forces shooting dead two Palestinians who appeared to have surrendered in the occupied West Bank.

The incident happened during an ongoing Israeli military operation in the city of Jenin.

The Palestinian Authority (PA) accused Israeli forces of committing a “war crime” and described the killings as “brutal” field executions.

The Israeli military and police say the men were wanted men “affiliated with a terror network” and the incident is under review.

Israel’s far-right national security minister Itamar Ben Gvir has given his full backing to the officers involved, adding that “terrorists must die”.

The video shows two Palestinian men come out of a building with their hands up. They are surrounded by a number of Israeli border guards. They then kneel on the ground. One of them lifts his t-shirt, apparently to show that he is not armed.

After a short period, they move back into the building. Border police then open fire, killing them.

A joint statement from the IDF and police said forces had been trying to apprehend wanted individuals who had carried out “terror activities”, including throwing explosives and firing at security forces.

“The forces entered the area, enclosed the structure in which the suspects were located, and initiated a surrender procedure that lasted several hours,” the statement said.

“Following the use of engineering tools on the structure, the two suspects exited. Following their exit, fire was directed toward the suspects.”

Writing on X, Ben-Gvir said “the fighters acted exactly as expected of them”.

The raid in Jenin is the latest in a months-long Israeli campaign in cities in the northern West Bank, which Israel says is necessary to tackle Palestinian armed groups it says were responsible for attacks on Israeli soldiers and Jewish settlers. On Wednesday the Israeli military launched an operation in the nearby city of Tubas.

Violence in the West Bank has spiked since the Hamas attack on southern Israel in October 2023, which led to a devastating Israeli military campaign in Gaza.

Israeli troops or settlers have killed more than 1,000 Palestinians, including members of armed groups and civilians, in the West Bank since then, the UN says. At least 44 Israelis, including soldiers and civilians, have been killed in Palestinian attacks or during Israeli military operations, Israel says.