by Daniel Siryoti, Lilach Shoval, Yoni Hirsch, News Agencies and Israel Hayom Staff
Palestinian advocacy group releases video footage showing apparent shooting deaths of two Palestinian teens during last Thursday's unrest in Beitunia • IDF: Initial probe indicates there was no live fire • U.S. and U.N. call for investigation.
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An
image from the video released by Defense for Children International Palestine
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Photo credit: Defense
for Children International Palestine website  |
Advocacy organization Defense for Children International
Palestine released security camera footage on Tuesday showing two apparently
unarmed Palestinians falling to the ground, with one using his hands to break
the fall, during a riot in the West Bank town of Beitunia last week.
In the first incident, clocked by the time stamp at 1:45
p.m., a figure with a backpack walks from the left side of the street toward a
group of people standing near a building wall on the other side. Suddenly, the
figure falls to the ground. Those near the wall rush to him and he is carried
away.
There was sporadic stone throwing for several minutes
before the incident.
In the second incident, clocked at 2:58 p.m. at the same
location, a figure walks from the wall toward the middle of the street. After a
few steps, he falls to the ground. There was no stone throwing at the time.
Associated Press footage from the day of the incident showed the evacuation of
the second shooting victim, who was wearing a green Hamas flag like a cape and
had thrown stones earlier.
The security camera video has no audio and shows no
uniformed forces. There is no apparent source of gunfire or a shooter in either
incident. The AP cameraman who was present during the confrontations said the
video was in line with what he witnessed.
The bodies of the slain teens were taken to a Ramallah
hospital. They were identified as Nadim Nawara and Mohammed Abu Dhaher, both
17.
At issue is a clash between Israeli troops and Palestinian
stone throwers on May 15, "Nakba Day," in Beitunia, a few hundred meters from an
Israeli military base, Ofer.
Starting around midday, several dozen Palestinian youths
burned tires in a main street and threw stones toward Israeli troops, according
to witnesses.
Troops fired rubber bullets, but also four live rounds,
claimed resident Fakher Zayed, who said he witnessed the confrontation from his
balcony. Four security cameras mounted on Zayed's building captured the events
on the street below.
The Palestinian Authority and families of the deceased are
calling for an international investigation into the incident. Family members of
the deceased say they will submit an official complaint with the International
Criminal Court in The Hague.
Commenting on the events, Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon
said on Tuesday, "We are familiar with these tendentious videos. This was a
violent incident in which Molotov cocktails and stones were thrown at Border
Police officers, who felt their lives were endangered and acted
accordingly."
The Israel Defense Forces Spokesperson's Unit said, "On
Thursday, there was a violent and illegal disturbance of the peace in Beitunia.
The video in question has been tendentiously edited and does not reflect the
violence at the scene. A preliminary examination with the forces present at the
incident indicates that there was no live fire. With that, the military has
ordered a limited police investigation into the issue."
Lt. Col. Peter Lerner, from the IDF Spokesperson's Unit,
said preliminary findings show forces fired only rubber-coated bullets, a
standard means of crowd control, and did not use live fire.
"We are charged with and committed to safeguarding human
life and we address the threats with necessary force when required," Lerner
said.
Lerner said military police carry out investigations and
after-action reviews "in any activity we carry out." He said an investigation
into the deaths of the two Palestinians is ongoing.
U.S. State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said Tuesday,
"We look to the government of Israel to conduct a prompt and transparent
investigation to determine the facts surrounding this incident, including
whether or not the use of force was proportional to the threat posed by the
demonstrators."
The United Nations similarly called on Israel to
investigate the incident.
Daniel Siryoti, Lilach Shoval, Yoni Hirsch, News Agencies and Israel Hayom Staff
Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_article.php?id=17663
Copyright - Original materials copyright (c) by the authors.
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