Palestinian killed and two wounded at checkpoint near Jerusalem

Al-Zayem checkpoint (photo Mika Ginsburg/Machsom Watch)

(Updated)
 Israeli soldiers killed a Palestinian worker and injured two others, one of them seriously, after opening fire at a van as it approached a checkpoint near Jerusalem early Monday. Hasan Badee Omar, 46, was hit several times in the chest and abdomen and evacuated to hospital, where he died from his injuries, Palestinian medics told Ma'an.
Ashraf Abdullah was hit in his shoulder and thigh while Khalid Imad Abdullah was shot in his right leg.

"We were 13 workers in a Ford Transit traveling to our working place in Jerusalem. Before we arrived at Zayem checkpoint, the driver received a message from another driver who approached the checkpoint before him telling that strict procedures were being applied and he should go back," one of the survivors Khalid Abdullah told Ma'an. "As the driver started to turn, border guard officers opened fire at the car without asking the driver to stop," he added.
Local Palestinian residents living near the checkpoint telephoned ambulances to evacuate the victims.

Israeli police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld told Ma'an that a vehicle tried to pass the al-Zaayyem checkpoint without stopping and ignored border patrol officers orders to halt at around 12.30 a.m.
"A border police officer opened fire at the vehicle in order to stop it from fleeing the scene," Rosenfeld said, adding that the vehicle fled the scene after the shooting.
Prime Minister Salam Fayyad on Monday blamed the Israeli government for the shooting. "The root cause of the problem is having the Israeli occupation and these checkpoints on our land which cause the killing of many people by either Israeli soldiers or settlers", Fayyad said in a statement.
Israel's failure to hold its forces accountable for criminal acts meant that violations continued, the PA premier added. Fayyad also said he doubted Israel's account of the incident.