The Israeli military said on Monday it believed with "high probability" that a Border Police sniper accidentally shot and killed a Palestinian teenager during clashes with militants in the northern West Bank city of Jenin the night before.
According to the IDF, a preliminary investigation into the incident found that 16-year-old Jana Zakarna was apparently standing close to gunmen who were shooting at soldiers from a rooftop during the arrest of wanted terror suspects. Zakarna is believed to have been mistaken for a militant.
The claim that security forces purposefully fired at uninvolved civilians is implausible and without foundation,” the IDF said on its Twitter page.
“Security forces will continue to investigate the incident and work to clarify its circumstances.
The IDF and its commanders regret any harm to uninvolved civilians, including those who are in a combat environment and in close proximity to armed terrorists during exchanges of fire.
Security forces will continue to conduct counterterrorism activities wherever necessary while making efforts to avoid harm to uninvolved civilians.”
Palestinian media reported Zakarna was found with seven bullet wounds. The director of Jenin's governmental hospital said she was killed by a bullet to the back of the head.
The raid of the West Bank city comes as part of a large-scale counterterrorism operation by the Jewish state in recent months following a spate of Palestinian attacks that killed 31 people in Israel in 2022.
Jenin has become a hotbed of Palestinian terrorist activity against Israel over the past year as many attacks on Israeli civilians and service members originate from there.
Zakarna's killing joins another incident in which Al Jazeera reporter Shireen Abu Akleh was killed last May under similar circumstances during a shootout between Israeli troops and Palestinian militants in Jenin. Abu Akleh is also believed to have been shot mistakenly by an Israeli soldier.
The killing of the journalist stirred uproar worldwide and led the U.S. to open an investigation into the circumstances of her death since she was also an American citizen.