Palestinian man killed by Israel ‘discriminatory execution’ | Civil Rights News

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A Palestinian man was killed by Israeli troops at a checkpoint between Jerusalem and Bethlehem last year in a “discriminatory execution”, according to a London-based group specifically investigating human rights violations.

Ahmed Erekat was killed at the Candlestick checkpoint in Bethlehem in the West Bank in June 2020 and was left to death for more than an hour after Israeli troops stopped a vehicle- Palestine Red Crescent patient from treatment.

In a report released Tuesday, Forensic Architecture said the 27-year-old was not a threat to Israeli soldiers, or any property, and noted that he did not receive first aid treatment after the shooting, even when he showed signs of life.

“Our analysis raises serious questions about Ahmed’s murder that raise doubts in Israeli army claims and calls for further investigation.”

Erekat, a nephew of Palestinian Freedom Organization (PLO) Secretary General Saeb Erekat, was on his way to pick up his mother and sisters, who were at a beauty salon preparing for his sister’s wedding that night, when he was killed. His own wedding was expected in two weeks.

Israeli security forces said Ahmed tried to rip his vehicle into a soldier at the checkpoint before opening fire.

Israeli police spokeswoman Micky Rosenfeld said the man “quickly turned his vehicle towards the direction of a lightly injured female border police officer”.

Palestinian officials denied the police account.

Saeb Erekat told AFP news agency that his nephew had been executed by Israeli police, adding that he was responsible to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for “this crime”. The Erekat elder from COVID-19 died in November last year.

Big difference

The new Forensic Architecture report found major anomalies in the Israeli version of the events surrounding the murder of Ahmed Erekat.

He found that Erekat did not accelerate his vehicle to hit the officers at the checkpoint, saying the evidence showed the vehicle was braking before impact.

“The car did not exceed 15 km / h [9.3 miles per hour] – its acceleration was stable and low throughout, meaning no sudden attempt was accelerated. “

The new report also said Erekat did not speak to the police officers at the checkpoint, as stated.

A video from the scene also shows “other details that cast doubt on the military’s statement”, the report said.

After the report was released, Erekat’s family appealed to the international community to help release his body, which remains with Israel.

Omar Shakir, director of the Israeli-Palestinian Human Rights Guard, said detaining Erekat’s body was an illegal punishment.

For years, Palestinian and Israeli rights groups have accused Israel of using too much force against those who are seen as a threat to its forces, using a deadly force against those who could be caught alive.

On January 31, an Israeli soldier shot dead Palestine on suspicion of attacking troops also on the West Bank.

Four days earlier, a teenager was shot and killed near the Jewish settlement of Ariel in the West Bank.

Last year, Israeli security forces were accused of killing at least 27 Palestinians across occupied areas and in Israel, according to Israeli rights group B’Tselem.

In at least 11 of the 16 killings carried out by B’Tselem on the West Bank, Palestinians posed no “threat to the lives of troops” or anyone else at the time. killed.

Meanwhile, the Israeli army said it had arrested “suspects” who had attempted a “ramming and car-burning attack” against its troops last month. the West Bank city of Jenin.

The report did not say how many suspects were arrested

Israel captured the West Bank, along with the Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem, in 1967. The Palestinians want these areas for the future of the state.

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