West Bank baby killed in Israeli shooting laid to rest
A seven-month-old Palestinian was buried in the Israeli-occupied West Bank a day after he was shot dead by the Israeli army near Hebron and his parents were wounded, according to family members who witnessed the shooting and the Palestinian Ministry of Health.
Wrapped in a white shroud and the Palestinian flag, Sam Fahd Abu Haikal was buried in Hebron after the funeral prayer at a nearby mosque.
The baby was killed while driving with his family near the city of Hebron on Friday.
The boy’s father, Fahd, said on Saturday: “What happened to us is not a matter of apology. What happened is not accidental shooting and causing this tragedy.” he said.
“It was by mistake, ‘I didn’t know you were coming here’ or the bullet passed by accident – no. There is no such thing as ‘by mistake’ in this case.”
The Israeli army said that a single shot was fired after soldiers “perceived a vehicle speeding towards them.”
The institution acknowledged that civilians who were not involved in the incident were injured, and stated that the incident was under investigation.
Earlier today, during operational activity in the Hebron area, IDF soldiers detected a vehicle accelerating towards them. An IDF soldier returned a single shot toward the vehicle. As a result, three Palestinians were injured and evacuated for medical treatment. An…— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) June 5, 2026
According to the boy’s grandmother, Firyal, the family stopped their car after seeing Israeli soldiers in the Tel Rumeida area, south of Hebron.
The grandmother said shots were fired, a single bullet pierced the car, killing Abu Haikal and wounding his parents.
Fahd said, “Immediately after the occupation forces arrived, a soldier with a gun opened fire on us. The bullets hit the car.”
“The soldier who shot at us was 10 meters away. The bullet pierced the windshield, passed through my arm, then hit my son’s head and my wife’s face.”
The military did not identify the soldiers involved and did not say whether they were still performing their duties while the investigation into the shooting continues.
