Shadi Najm

Their life

Shadi Najm, aged 18, was a young Palestinian from Jenin who stood alongside hundreds of demonstrators protesting an Israeli military invasion of Jenin on March 1, 2022. He was committed to defending his community and resisting occupation through public demonstration. During the protest, Shadi was shot in the head by Israeli soldiers and rushed to Ibn Sina Hospital, where he underwent surgery but tragically died from his wounds in the Intensive Care Unit. His death marked a significant loss for the community and sparked widespread mourning and protests in Jenin.

Shadi Najm was an 18-year-old Palestinian youth from Jenin, a city located in the northern West Bank. Growing up in a region marked by decades of occupation and conflict, Shadi was part of a generation of young Palestinians deeply affected by ongoing Israeli military operations and settler violence. He was known among his family and community as a determined and courageous individual who actively participated in protests against Israeli incursions and the broader occupation.

On March 1, 2022, Shadi joined hundreds of demonstrators in Jenin who were protesting against an Israeli military raid in the city. The raid was part of a broader pattern of Israeli military operations in Palestinian towns in the West Bank, often involving home invasions, arrests, and confrontations with local residents. During the protest, Israeli soldiers used live ammunition and other forms of force to disperse the crowd.

Shadi was shot in the head with a live bullet during this protest. Despite rapid medical intervention, including emergency surgery at Ibn Sina Hospital, he succumbed to his injuries in the Intensive Care Unit. His death was a devastating blow to his family and community, sparking a general strike and widespread protests in Jenin to mourn his loss and call for justice.

His killing was seen as part of a larger pattern of violence and repression faced by Palestinians in the occupied territories, especially young activists who protest against military occupation and settlement expansion. Shadi Najm’s death remains a poignant symbol of the risks Palestinian youth face in standing up for their rights and their communities.

How they died

Shadi was shot with a live bullet to the stem of his brain by Israeli forces during the protest on March 1, 2022. Despite emergency surgery, he succumbed to his injuries in the hospital.

Shadi Najm died as a direct result of a gunshot wound inflicted by Israeli soldiers during a protest against a military invasion of Jenin on March 1, 2022. According to medical sources, Shadi was shot in the head, specifically in the stem of his brain, with a live bullet fired by the soldiers. The injury was immediately life-threatening and required urgent medical intervention.

He was rushed to Ibn Sina Hospital in Jenin, where he underwent surgery in an attempt to save his life. Despite the medical team's efforts, the severity and location of the wound—damaging a critical part of the brain—proved fatal. Shadi succumbed to his injuries in the Intensive Care Unit shortly after the operation.

The circumstances of his shooting were part of a larger violent crackdown by Israeli forces, which included the use of live ammunition, rubber-coated steel bullets, tear gas, gas bombs, and concussion grenades against protesters. The attack was not isolated, as many others were injured or affected by the use of force during the military incursion.

Shadi’s death is viewed by Palestinians and human rights advocates as an example of the excessive use of lethal force by the Israeli military during demonstrations and raids in the occupied West Bank.

Why we remember them

This record exists so that Shadi Najm, and all who are named in this archive, are never reduced to a number.

References & sources