US demands ‘urgent’ Israeli probe into Palestinian-American child’s death

US calls for a quick investigation into the killing of 17-year-old Tawfiq Ajaq in the occupied West Bank.

The United States has urged Israel to launch an investigation into the death of Tawfiq Ajaq, a 17-year-old Palestinian-American who Palestinian authorities say was killed by Israeli troops in the occupied West Bank.

At a press briefing in Washington, DC on Monday, US State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel told reporters that the US is “devastated about the killing” and is continuing “to engage closely with the Government of Israel to ascertain as much information as possible”.

“We have called for an urgent investigation to determine the circumstance of his death,” Patel said. He added that the head of the US Office of Palestinian Affairs had visited Ajaq’s family to offer condolences and would continue assisting them together with the US Embassy in Jerusalem.

Ajaq was born in Gretna, Louisiana, near New Orleans, and was brought to the West Bank by his parents last year.

Ajaq’s relative, Joe Abdel Qaki, said Tawfiq and a friend were having a barbecue in a village field when he was shot.