On Thursday, 12 January 2023, at around 2:30 P.M., dozens of soldiers and Border Police officers – both uniformed and undercover – and Israel Security Agency personnel raided the town of Qabatiyah in Jenin District and entered the yard of the Kmeil family home. Muhammad Kmeil (26) was working on the house he is building near the main family home, and was sitting in it at the time along with his friend Muhammad ‘Alawneh and his cousin Habiballah Kmeil (26).
When Muhammad Kmeil heard the forces entering the yard, he went outside to see what was going on. As soon as he came out, the forces pounced on him, knocked him down, and then handcuffed and blindfolded him as he lay on the ground. After about 40 minutes, they took him to the living room of his parents’ house, made him lie on the floor and left him there on his own. In the meantime, the forces held the rest of the family under guard in one of the rooms and searched the house, throwing objects on the floor and moving furniture in the process.
‘Alawneh and Habiballah tried to escape through a nearby olive grove, but the forces apprehended ‘Alawneh and took him to one of the jeeps. Habiballah managed to go a few dozen meters into the grove, but the forces gave chase and then opened fire, hitting him in the head. Habiballah fell down. About 10 soldiers went over to him, frisked him and then abandoned him in the grove and left.
About an hour later, the forces left the Kmeil home. When the family members came out of the room, they were surprised to find Muhammad lying on the living room floor, handcuffed and blindfolded. Immediately afterwards, they learned Habiballah had been shot in the nearby grove. They took him to hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
During ‘Alawneh’s arrest, clashes broke out about a kilometer away from the Kmeil home between local Palestinian youths and a different group of soldiers and police officers. In the clashes, youths threw stones and several of them also fired live rounds at the forces, who responded with live fire, killing one of the armed youths – ‘Abd al-Hadi Nazzal (18).
Following the incident, the IDF Spokesperson said that “during an operation in the village of Qabatiyah, the wanted man fled with another suspect, and the forces fired at them. The wanted man was arrested, and a hit was detected on the other suspect.” Clearly, these vague references to a “suspect” in an unknown crime and a hit being “detected,” which completely gloss over the fact that a man was killed, provide no justification for Habiballah’s killing.
This incident illustrates what little regard the apartheid regime has for the lives, property and daily routines of Palestinians, all blatantly disregarded by forces in the field. B’Tselem’s investigation found that Israeli forces shot a Palestinian suspected of nothing in the head as he was fleeing them, and then searched him and left him in an olive grove, as though nothing happened.
In the apartheid regime between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea, such conduct is not only possible but considered justified by everyone responsible. Under this regime, which works tenaciously to perpetuate the supremacy of one group – Jews – over another – Palestinians, incidents of this kind have become routine and therefore, no one will be held accountable.
B’Tselem field researcher Abdulkarim Sadi collected testimonies from members of Habiballah Kmeil’s family:
‘Alaa Kmeil (28), a married father of one, said on 14 January 2023
On Thursday, 12 January 2023, around 2:30 P.M., I came home from work at the Qabatiyah municipality. I live with my wife and our little girl on the second floor, and my parents live on the first floor with my brothers. When I got to the front of the house, I saw my cousin Habiballah, who was back from a trip. He was with my brother Muhammad and our neighbor, Muhammad ‘Alawneh. They were sitting in Muhammad’s house, which is still under construction, a few meters away from our home.
I went over to say hello to them. Habiballah wanted us to have coffee together, so I said I would make the coffee at my house and bring it over. When I left Muhammad’s house, two commercial vehicles drove up to the yard and soldiers got out. I felt the situation was dangerous, so I walked faster and managed to get inside our house. I wanted to be with my wife and our daughter, and with the whole family. As I was going into the house, I heard gunfire start up outside. I went down with to the first floor my wife and our daughter, so we could be with my parents and brothers and all stick together. A few moments after we gathered in one of the rooms, soldiers came inside. Two soldiers stood guard over us inside the room, and we heard the others searching the whole house. I heard soldiers shouting in Hebrew, which I don’t understand, and more shots fired outside the house.
The soldiers didn’t question any of us, and after about an hour they left the house. Then we heard my brother Muhammad calling out to us. We didn’t even know he was in the house. We found him lying on the living room floor, handcuffed and blindfolded. While my father and I took off his handcuffs and blindfold, we heard a relative of ours, Ahmad, calling for us to come help him. Muhammad and I went outside and saw him running towards the olive grove.
We found Habiballah lying on his back, with a bullet hole in his head and his mouth full of blood. We were in total shock. We picked him up and drove him in a neighbor’s car to the medical center in town, and from there he as taken by ambulance to hospital in Jenin. He was no longer alive.
Muhammad Kmeil (26), from Qabatiyah, said on 14 January 2023
On Thursday, 12 January 2023, at around 2:30 P.M., I was in my house, which is still under construction, in the yard of our family home on the edge of the eastern neighborhood of Qabatiyah. My cousin, Habiballah Kmeil, got back from Turkey that day. He came to visit me and brought me cologne as a present. A friend of mine, Muhammad ‘Alawneh, who lives in the neighborhood, also came to visit. We were sitting in the living room of my house, and then my brother ‘Alaa arrived. He lives upstairs from my parents. Habib asked me for a cup of coffee, and ‘Alaa said he’d make some at his house and bring it to us. As he was leaving my house, we heard heavy vehicles approaching.
I went out right away and saw a large group of soldiers getting out of two vehicles. Two soldiers ran over to me. They pounced on me, laid me down on the ground, tied my hands behind my back with zip ties and blindfolded me with a piece of cloth. One of them asked what my name was, and I told him it was Muhammad. He asked me about my little brother, Rabi’, and I told him he wasn’t home. I felt the two soldiers’ knees pressing down on my back the whole time. I heard soldiers shouting and gunfire.
I didn’t know what happened to Habib and Muhammad ‘Alawneh, because I couldn’t see anything. After maybe 40 minutes, the soldiers picked me up and took me to my parents’ house, where they left me in the living room. I couldn’t hear anyone from my family, and later I found out I’d been alone because the soldiers had held everyone in one of the rooms in the house. After about 20 minutes, I heard the soldiers leaving the house. I called out to my family. They came and took off my handcuffs and blindfold. Just then, we heard a relative of ours, Ahmad Kmeil, who lives next door, calling us to come help.
‘Alaa and I ran over to him. We saw Ahmad running towards Habiballah, who was lying on his back in the olive grove. He had a bullet wound in the head and his mouth was full of blood. We picked him up and drove him in a private car to a medical center in Qabatiyah, but he was already dead. He was taken to a hospital in Jenin from there. Habiballah was a merchant. He had a clothing store and had good connections with people. He had no problems with Israel. He traveled abroad without any problem.
Ahmad Kmeil (28), a married father of two, said on 15 January 2023
At around 2:30 P.M., I was sitting at home with my wife and our two small children when I heard three shots nearby. I went up to the roof right away to see what was happening. I was shocked when I saw Israeli soldiers in the yard of my relatives’, in Muhammad Kmeil’s house, which is about 200 meters away from us. I also saw soldiers spreading out between the houses.
Suddenly, I saw a relative of mine, Habiballah Kmeil, running from the direction of Muhammad’s house. I also saw some soldiers had caught Muhammad ‘Alawneh near Muhammad’s house. He must have been trying to escape. Then I saw Habiballah hiding behind an olive tree. He was crouching down. A few minutes later, I heard one shot fired west of my house, towards where Habib was. He was about 50 to 60 meters away from me. I saw him fall over. Ten soldiers ran over to where he fell, and I saw them searching his body.
After about an hour, the soldiers left the home of Muhammad Kmeil’s family. I didn’t dare go outside until they left, and then I called for help. Muhammad and ‘Alaa Kmeil came, and we carried Habiballah away. He wasn’t moving, and his head and his entire face were covered in blood.
