Israeli forces on Thursday killed a pair of Palestinian men in the occupied West Bank after they appeared to surrender to troops, drawing Palestinian accusations that the men were executed “in cold blood”. The Israeli military said it was investigating.
The killings, captured in videos shown on two Arab TV stations, came as Israel pressed ahead with its latest offensive in the West Bank, where the army has stepped up its activities over the past two years. Israel has said it was cracking down on militants, but Palestinians and rights groups have accused Israel of using excessive force and say dozens of unarmed civilians have been killed.
Israel has been fighting on a number of fronts as a shaky ceasefire in Gaza moves forward. On Thursday, Israel carried out another round of air strikes on suspected Hezbollah sites in southern Lebanon. Ongoing conflicts in the region have fuelled concerns that unrest could spill over and undermine the fragile truce in Gaza.
The Israeli military and national police announced they were opening an investigation into the deaths Thursday of the two men, who were shot by members of the border police, a special unit that often operates alongside the Israeli military.
In a video shown on Palestine TV, which has no sound, the two men come out of a garage holding their hands up and lifting their shirts to show they are not carrying explosives.
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