Palestinian Teenagers Shot Dead by Israelis

21/11/2004| IslamWeb

Two Palestinian teenagers have been killed by Israeli army fire in the northern West Bank city of Nablus. The victims were named as Amir Banat and Muntassir Hadadi, both aged 15. Palestinian security and medical sources said the deaths occurred on Saturday after clashes between stone-throwers and Israeli soldiers. A third Palestinian was seriously wounded by Israeli fire, they said. The deaths bring to 4580 the number of people killed since the beginning of the second Palestinian intifada in September 2000, including 3545 Palestinians and 961 Israelis. **Children wounded*** Other violence in the southern Gaza town of Rafah left four Palestinians wounded by Israeli occupation army fire according to Palestinian medical sources. A man in his 60s and two children were among the injured, they said. In other developments, William Burns, the US assistant secretary of state will meet PLO chief Mahmud Abbas and other Palestinian leaders on the eve of Secretary of State Colin Powell's visit to the region, an American official said. Powell is scheduled to meet Israeli and Palestinian officials on Monday. **Stated targets*** A Palestinian official said the Palestinian leaders would use the meetings with Burns to set an agenda for contacts with Powell. The Palestinians have said they want the United States to stick to the Washington-backed road map for peace which sees the establishment of a Palestinian state by the end of 2005. US President George Bush has now extended that time-frame to 2009 - the end of his second term. Earlier this month, Bush told a Washington news conference he wanted to see a Palestinian state created before he leaves office. **PHOTO CAPTION*** Palestinian looks at the bodies of two 15-year-old boys in a hospital morgue in the West Bank city of Nablus November 20, 2004. (REUTERS)