Ibtisam Khaled Ka’abna

Their life

Ibtisam Khaled Ka’abna was a 28-year-old Palestinian woman from Aqbat Jaber refugee camp in Jericho. She was a married mother of one child and a former political prisoner who spent 18 months in Israeli detention after being arrested in 2015. On June 12, 2021, she was shot and killed by Israeli soldiers at the Qalandia Terminal, north of occupied Jerusalem, after allegedly attempting to attack soldiers with a knife. Video footage and eyewitness accounts, however, showed her at a distance from the soldiers when she was shot. Witnesses, including her brother, stated that she was left to bleed on the ground without medical assistance until she died. Her killing raised serious questions about the Israeli military's use of lethal force, particularly in situations where non-lethal measures could have been taken.

Ibtisam Khaled Ka’abna was a 28-year-old Palestinian woman from Aqbat Jaber refugee camp, located in Jericho, in the occupied West Bank. She was a married mother of one child and had previously been a political prisoner, detained by Israeli forces in 2015 and held for 18 months. On June 12, 2021, Ibtisam was fatally shot at the Qalandia Terminal, north of East Jerusalem. Israeli sources alleged that she approached soldiers brandishing a knife and attempted an attack; however, videos from the scene show her at a considerable distance from the soldiers when she was shot.

Her brother, Khaled Mohammad Ka’abna, stated that she was left bleeding on the ground without medical attention and that she died from blood loss. No Israeli soldiers were injured in the incident. The killing raised significant concern among Palestinian rights groups and analysts, who pointed out that even if she had been carrying a knife, lethal force was not necessary, and she could have been subdued without being killed. Her death, and the manner in which she was left to die, was widely condemned and cited as another instance of extrajudicial killing by Israeli forces.

How they died

Shot and killed by Israeli soldiers at Qalandia Terminal; died from gunshot wounds and lack of medical treatment.

Ibtisam was shot by Israeli forces on June 12, 2021, at Qalandia Terminal after allegedly attempting an attack with a knife. However, video evidence showed her at a distance from the soldiers, and no harm was caused to any Israeli personnel. She was shot and left to bleed on the ground without medical intervention. Her brother reported that soldiers made no attempt to treat her injuries, and she eventually succumbed to blood loss. The incident has been described by analysts and human rights observers as an extrajudicial execution, raising concerns over Israel’s rules of engagement and accountability in such cases.

A plea from the family

Ibtisam’s family, particularly her brother, has publicly condemned the way she was killed and left without medical help. His account highlights the family’s grief and demand for justice, as well as their rejection of the Israeli military’s version of the events. Her killing has become emblematic of broader concerns about the Israeli military’s use of lethal force against Palestinians, especially women and former detainees.

Why we remember them

This record exists so that Ibtisam Khaled Ka’abna, and all who are named in this archive, are never reduced to a number.

References & sources