Bashar Kabaleh, student

On the night of the incident [8 November], I was asleep in my room with my brothers Muhanad, Salah, and Mujahed. My father and mother were in their bedroom, and my brother Shadi and his wife were on the second floor.

I woke up when I heard shouting outside: "Open the door." I went to the yard and saw some young guys bringing in one wounded person. I went and helped them bring in another wounded person. They were asking for help. My parents and I took care of the two wounded, Hamadeh Al-rajah and Salim al-Tahbush. Hamadeh had been wounded in the shoulder and stomach. He was bleeding and was in a serious condition, and couldn't stand. Salim was wounded in the upper thigh. He was able to stand and walk. We bandaged the wounds in an attempt to stop the bleeding. My mother brought blankets and bedding and covered them. My brother Muhanad called for an ambulance. After what seemed like a long time, neighbors called and said that the ambulance was on the way.

Then we heard the sound of army vehicles next to the house. The soldiers shouted to everyone in the house to go outside. I went to open the door, and just before I got there, they hurled a stun grenade into the courtyard. When I opened the door, the jeep was very close to the door. The soldier sitting next to the driver told me, "Everybody in the house, get out." I called to my family, and everybody gathered on the steps leading up to my brother Shadi's apartment. Then he ordered us to sit facing the soldiers, facing the door. Before the soldiers came into the house, they asked if anybody from the family was missing, and then Shadi and his wife joined us sitting facing the soldiers.

Hamadeh was right opposite the door. He was completely covered, except for his head. Salim was in the storage room, with his feet protruding into the courtyard. Three soldiers entered. They were in full military dress, with helmets, bullet-proof vests, and had medium-sized rifles. The storage room is next to the entrance to the house. It is used to store olives, and has two doors, one facing the road, and the other, the yard.

Two minutes after the soldiers went into the room, I heard a shot, but I couldn't see if Salim had been hit, and I couldn't see if he was moving. A few seconds after that, the soldiers fired two shots at Hamadeh. I didn't see the soldier or his rifle, but I saw the flash of the shots. I didn't see Hamadeh move at all.

After a minute or two passed, the soldiers ordered us to get up. They ordered my father to undress, except for his underpants. Then they ordered us to undress. Then they ordered us, one after the other, to go to the room they were in. We went into the room together, and one of the soldiers ordered my brother Mujahed to bring the ID cards. He brought them and joined us. Two soldiers went to the other rooms, and one soldier remained with us. They told my father, me, Muhanad, Shadi, and Mujahed to go outside and out the gate. Salah remained with them. They sat us down by the corner of the house. Later they took us back to the room.

Later, they ordered us to walk on the street, with one jeep driving in front of us and the other driving behind us. My father and the women remained in the house. The soldiers came out of the house with a bag belonging to my brother Shadi, who deals in cell phones.

The soldiers led to us the site where they had been before the encounter with the young men. On the way there, the jeep in front of us stopped. A soldier ordered me to move the body from the road. I couldn't identify the body. Later, when I returned home, I learned it was the body of Taher 'Abahareh. When we reached the place of the encounter, the soldiers separated me and my brothers and put us into jeeps. They took us to the area next to al-Arqam Mosque. From there, they put us into a truck, blindfolded us, bound our hands behind us with plastic cuffs, and took us to Sallem.

At Salem, a man in civilian dress questioned me. He asked my name and about my work. He asked particulars about me and about what happened. I told him that I saw the two young men being shot. He asked me again, and I emphasized that the soldiers fired at the young men in front of our eyes. He asked me the names of the two young men who had been killed, and I told him. My brothers and I were released around 8:15 am.

Bashar Muhammad Jamil Kabaleh, 20, is a student and a resident of al-Yamun in Jenin district. His testimony was given to 'Atef Abu a-Rub at the witness's house on 11 November 2006.