A Louisiana-born teenager has been killed by Israeli gunfire in the occupied West Bank.
17-year-old Tawfiq Ajaq was shot dead on Friday, less than a year after he moved to the war-torn country to finish high school and reconnect with Palestinian culture.
His parents took him and his four siblings to the Middle East last summer before the conflict broke out.
He was shot by an Israeli military member on the way back to the small village, it was said on Saturday – before it was claimed that the Biden administration had made the murder possible.
At his funeral abroad, the teenager's father, Hafez Ajaq, criticized the country's longstanding support for Israel and implored Americans to “see with their own eyes” the truth about the conflict.
Scroll down for the video:
17-year-old Tawfiq Ajaq was shot dead on Friday, less than a year after he moved to the war-torn country to finish high school and reconnect with Palestinian culture
Relatives mourn at his funeral in his family's Palestinian home village in Al-Mazra'a ash-Sharqiya, West Bank, on Saturday
Both the US and Israel have issued statements saying they are investigating the teenager's death, although Israel has not yet confirmed responsibility.
As of Sunday morning, both investigations – with the Israeli investigation being carried out by the country's police – had not revealed anything significant.
Hafez, meanwhile, claimed Americans were not learning the “true story” about the shooting and the ongoing conflict.
“They are killing machines,” he said of the Israeli armed forces, which have received more than $260 billion from the United States alone since the country’s founding in 1945.
“They are using our tax dollars in the US to fund the weapons we use to kill our own children,” he continued, speaking during the ceremony in Al-Mazra'a Ash-Sharqiya.
“American society doesn’t know the real story,” he continued. “Come here and see what’s going on.”
Then he asked, “How many fathers and mothers have to say goodbye to their children?”
'How many more?'
Ajaq – one of more than 30 Americans killed in the conflict – was born and raised in Gretna, Louisiana, near New Orleans, relatives said
His parents took him to Ash-Sharqiya, where fewer than 5,000 people live, last year and he was given a hero's farewell on Saturday. In the picture, crowds of Palestinians could be seen streaming through the village streets as men held up a stretcher containing the teenager's body.
It was wrapped in a Palestinian flag. Ajaq was killed by Israeli fire on Friday and police said they had launched an investigation
“I am full of sadness for his mother, his father, his uncles, myself – all his relatives,” said Mohammad Salen, Ajaq's great-uncle. “In this situation, sadness covers us from everywhere”
“Good things always die young,” said Tawfiq’s cousin Maher Abdul Jabbar. “This is a prime example of what happened to my cousin.”
He further told NBC News: “Born and raised in the US, he has been here for a year.”
“He doesn't know anything – I'll teach him what life is.” I'll teach him what the land is. How much does the property cost?
“And here he is,” he continued after carrying the boy’s coffin. 'He is 1705869612 pay for it, for freedom.'
NewsNation also spoke with several of the victim's family members on Saturday and learned how “heartbroken” they are over the loss.
In their first broadcast interview since the incident, they described how they are still trying to reconstruct the incident.
“I am full of sadness for his mother, his father, his uncles, myself – all his relatives,” said Mohammad Salen, Ajaq's great-uncle.
“In this situation, sadness covers us from everywhere.”
Appearing via video link, the man went on to reveal that Ajaq had planned to spend his senior year abroad before returning to college in New Orleans, his birthplace.
There, Salen said, the teenager wanted to study business administration – a dream that has now been dashed.
The boy's father, meanwhile, claimed that Americans don't understand the “true story” about the shooting – and the conflict in general – and therefore need to “see for themselves” how senseless the violence is
“They are killing machines,” he said of the Israeli armed forces, which have received more than $260 billion from the United States alone since the country’s founding in 1945
“They are using our tax dollars in the US to fund the weapons we use to kill our own children,” he continued, speaking during the ceremony in Al-Mazra'a Ash-Sharqiya
“Good things always die young,” said Tawfiq’s cousin Maher Abdul Jabbar. “This is a prime example of what happened to my cousin.”
He and others went on to say that Ajaq was a member of a mosque in the New Orleans area before his move and that the place of worship held a vigil for him on Saturday evening while officials' investigation continues.
Asked if he could “tell him something now,” Jabbar replied: “I would tell him that I was always proud of him -” [that] he was such a good boy. [That] I loved him.
“That’s the main thing,” he added, becoming increasingly emotional. 'I loved him; Our whole family loved him. He was really valuable to us.'
An Israeli bulletin said officials had already received reports of an incident that occurred near the site where Ajaq was killed, in which an off-duty police officer and a civilian “shot at a Palestinian person who was suspected of throwing stones into the area”.
“An IDF soldier was present in the area,” the military said. “The claim that the soldier shot the Palestinian is currently being verified.” Israeli police have launched an investigation into the incident.
The US Department addressed the teenager's death in its own statement, which was supported by comments from NSC Strategic Communications Coordinator John Kirby at a White House press conference.
The Israel Defense Forces, meanwhile, said it was investigating the incident and issued a statement claiming officials had already received reports of an incident that occurred near the shooting, in which an off-duty police officer and a civilian “shot at a Palestinian person suspected of hurling them.” Rocks in the area'
“An IDF soldier was present in the area,” the military said. “The claim that the soldier shot the Palestinian is currently being verified.” Israeli police have launched an investigation into the incident.
The incident is just the latest deadly shooting in the West Bank, where nearly 370 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire since the Israel-Hamas war broke out more than three months ago
The US addressed the teenager's death in its own statement and said it had asked Israel for more information
The sparse statement said: “We can confirm the death of a U.S. civilian in the West Bank on January 19, 2024.”
“We are working to understand the circumstances of the incident and have asked the Israeli government for further information.”
When asked about the killing at the White House press briefing on Friday, the US National Security Council spokesman said: “It's certainly deeply concerning.”
“I’m afraid I don’t have any further information,” he added. [But] [W]“We are seriously concerned about this.”
The incident is just the latest deadly shooting in the West Bank, where nearly 370 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire since the Israel-Hamas war broke out in Gaza more than three months ago.
The Biden administration has recently repeatedly expressed concern about Israeli settler violence against Palestinians.
Ajaq – one of more than 30 Americans killed in the conflict – was born and raised in Gretna, Louisiana, near New Orleans, relatives said.
His parents took him to Ash-Sharqiya, where fewer than 5,000 people live, last year and he was given a hero's farewell on Saturday.
In the picture, crowds of Palestinians could be seen streaming through the village streets as men held up a stretcher containing the teenager's body.
It was wrapped in a Palestinian flag.