Palestinian brother, sister slain by Israel without cause

Family members of two Palestinian siblings recently slain by Israeli troops at a checkpoint in the occupied West Bank say Tel Aviv regime forces killed them without any reason.

The parents of 24-year-old Maram Abu Ismail and her 16-year-old brother, Ibrahim Taha, said on Thursday that they they did not pose any threat to anyone’s life and were attacked without provocation by the Israeli forces at the Qalandiya checkpoint between al-Quds (Jerusalem) and the city of Ramallah on Wednesday.

Human rights groups say the latest deaths raise new questions about Israel's use of lethal force against Palestinians.

Israeli rights group B'Tselem said Thursday that it often finds the "degree of threat posed by the individual was much lower than was claimed" by Israeli forces.

Israeli sources have claimed that troops gunned down the siblings on Wednesday after they ignored calls to stop and Maram threw a knife at a policeman guarding the checkpoint. No Israelis were injured in the incident.

Witnesses have disputed this version of events.

An eyewitness told Palestine's Ma'an news agency that Israeli forces fired over 15 rounds at the woman’s body.

According to the Palestinian Health Ministry, the woman was killed immediately, but her brother’s death was confirmed shortly after he was shot.

Meanwhile, the Palestinian Red Crescent has said that Israeli forces denied Palestinian paramedics access to the victims for medical treatment.