A Palestinian teenager has died after being shot by Israeli forces last month during protests and clashes along the Gaza border, the health ministry in the enclave said. Saheeb Abu Kashef, 16, died late Saturday after being shot on August 3 east of Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip, according to the ministry. An Israeli military spokesman has meanwhile raised questions over the death of a 12-year-old Palestinian in the Gaza Strip during protests and clashes on Friday. The health ministry said on Friday that Shadi Abdel Aal was killed by Israeli fire east of Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip. On Saturday, a friend who was with him at the time said they were throwing stones at the border fence when Abdel Aal was hit by a tear gas grenade fired by Israeli soldiers and collapsed instantly. Israeli military spokesman Avichay Adraee said on Twitter that, according to “indications” and unnamed “witnesses,” the boy was killed after being hit by stones that had been thrown. The army did not respond to a request for further details. Ashraf al-Qudra, spokesman for the Gaza health ministry, told AFP on Sunday that the ministry stood by its statement that the boy was killed by Israeli fire and that an autopsy would confirm further details. At least 179 Palestinians in Gaza have been killed since protests and clashes erupted along the border on March 30. One Israeli soldier has been killed since then. Israel accuses Hamas, the Islamist movement that runs the Gaza Strip, of seeking to use the protests to carry out attacks or infiltrations. It says its actions are necessary to defend the border. Published in Daily Times, September 17th 2018.