On 31 January at approximately 6:20 pm, Israeli Occupying Forces (IOF) opened fire on three Palestinians near the Yitsahar bypass road used by Israeli settlers. On that day, Ahmad Ibrahim Abu 'Azza (Najjar), 19, Muhammd 'As'us, 18, and 'Abdelrahman Daoud Najjar, 18, all from Burin village, threw a Molotov cocktail on the Yitsahar street before the IOF started shooting at them. Ahmad was shot in the face from approximately five metres away, and died shortly afterwards as a result. Muhammad was shot in the abdomen. On Sunday 1 February at approximately 2:30 am, both Muhammad and 'Abdelrahman were arrested by the IOF from their homes in Burin.

Affidavit of Mahmoud Ahmad Al-Karmi - Nablus

On 31 January, at approximately 7:30 pm, the Huwwara ambulance and emergency centre was informed about an injury in Al-Nafaq area, located between Madama and Burin villages, south of Nablus. Mahmoud, 41, along with his colleague Fawwaz Al-Bitar, got into the ambulance and headed towards Burin, approximately two kilometres away. The Israeli forces had set up a checkpoint at the entrance of Burin, restricting the movement of cars going in and out of the village. The soldiers questioned the paramedics, Mahmoud and Fawwaz, as to why they were going into the village. The paramedics told them about the injury and they were let through about two minutes later.

There were five Israeli military patrols present on Yitsahar street, southwest of Burin, along with a military ambulance, a police car and a number of soldiers. Mahmoud and Fawwaz assumed that the injury was in that area so they headed in that direction. At the entrance of Yitsahar street, there was another checkpoint that delayed the Palestinian ambulance for about three minutes. A soldier stopped the ambulance and asked Mahmoud why they were there, and then told them that there was a dead body to collect. A man approached the ambulance, armed and dressed in civilian clothes. He informed Mahmoud that they should head west down the street towards the intersection. 

At 7:48 pm, the paramedics arrived to the scene but were ordered by the soldiers to remain inside the ambulance. At 9:20 pm, an Israeli doctor, who belongs to the IOF, approached them and asked them to get the stretcher. They were taken to the location where they found Ahmad Ibrahim Abu 'Azza's dead and laid on his back. Ahmad sustained an injury in the face. Mahmoud and Fawwaz transferred him on the stretcher. He was hit by one bullet to the lower jaw, which exited from the left side of his neck. Ahmad's body arrived at the Rafidia Governmental Hospital in Nablus at approximately 10:00 pm. (Al-Haq Affidavit No. 10372/2015)

Al-Haq remains concerned at the IOF’s continued use of lethal force against the Palestinian population, and condemns the killing of Ahmed Ibrahim Abu 'Azza (Najjar). As an Occupying Power, Israel must ensure the right to life of the occupied Palestinian population as per the Fourth Geneva Convention and Article 46 of the Hague Regulations. The right to life is also safeguarded under international human rights law, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which recognises every individual's inherent right to life and the necessity of protecting this right. As noted above, Ahmad was lethally shot in the face at short distance. This is contrary to international principles on the use of force, which first encourage the deployment of non-violent means in dealing with a situation. Firearms may only be used “when strictly unavoidable in order to protect life,”[1] and their use must aim to preserve human life.