2 july 2019
A protester is hit by a car in central Israel
Demonstrator evacuated to hospital in moderate condition; violence erupts across the country as thousands take to the streets after funeral for teenager killed by off-duty policeman in Haifa area
A 28-year-old protester was moderately hurt in a hit and run that occurred while he was blocking Highway 431 near the central city of Lod on Tuesday evening.
The wounded man was evacuated to a nearby hospital.
The man was part of the mass protests by the Ethiopian community across Israel, following the funeral for a teenager shot dead by an off-duty police officer in the Haifa district on Sunday. video's
Solomon Tekah, aged 19, was killed when the policeman, who was walking with his family intervened in a street brawl. The policeman, who was arrested and placed on house arrest, said that he feared for his own life and those of his family.
Violence also broke out at other protests across the country Tuesday, leaving at least 40 people wounded. Around 60 people were arrested in total at locations all over Israel.
Protesters hurled a Molotov cocktail at a police station in the Haifa district. The fire was quickly put out. Other protesters in the area were hurling rocks at the police.
Police officers were also attacked in the southern city of Ashdod. At least 10 protesters were arrested. In the coastal city of Netanya, at least one police car was attacked.
In Tel Aviv, protesters outside the Azrieli shopping center set fire to a car and began attacking other vehicles in the area. They also blocked the nearby junction to the Ayalon Highway that encircles the city.
The protests caused massive traffic jams across the country with some 50,000 commuters stuck in massive tailbacks.
The road authority said that even when the roads are cleared, it would take hours to remove the rocks and other debris thrown by protesters.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu released a video calling for the protesters to stop blocking traffic.
Demonstrator evacuated to hospital in moderate condition; violence erupts across the country as thousands take to the streets after funeral for teenager killed by off-duty policeman in Haifa area
A 28-year-old protester was moderately hurt in a hit and run that occurred while he was blocking Highway 431 near the central city of Lod on Tuesday evening.
The wounded man was evacuated to a nearby hospital.
The man was part of the mass protests by the Ethiopian community across Israel, following the funeral for a teenager shot dead by an off-duty police officer in the Haifa district on Sunday. video's
Solomon Tekah, aged 19, was killed when the policeman, who was walking with his family intervened in a street brawl. The policeman, who was arrested and placed on house arrest, said that he feared for his own life and those of his family.
Violence also broke out at other protests across the country Tuesday, leaving at least 40 people wounded. Around 60 people were arrested in total at locations all over Israel.
Protesters hurled a Molotov cocktail at a police station in the Haifa district. The fire was quickly put out. Other protesters in the area were hurling rocks at the police.
Police officers were also attacked in the southern city of Ashdod. At least 10 protesters were arrested. In the coastal city of Netanya, at least one police car was attacked.
In Tel Aviv, protesters outside the Azrieli shopping center set fire to a car and began attacking other vehicles in the area. They also blocked the nearby junction to the Ayalon Highway that encircles the city.
The protests caused massive traffic jams across the country with some 50,000 commuters stuck in massive tailbacks.
The road authority said that even when the roads are cleared, it would take hours to remove the rocks and other debris thrown by protesters.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu released a video calling for the protesters to stop blocking traffic.
Masses protest around Israel following the killing of Solomon Tekah by an off-duty cop; many roads, junctions closed, protesters block train tracks; police uses crowd dispersal methods in Tel Aviv, Haifa
Mass protests raged in several locations around the Israel on Tuesday evening, following the funeral for 19-year-old Solomon Tekah, who was shot dead by an off-duty policeman in a Haifa suburb on Sunday. Dozens were injured, of whom 47 police officers, and 60 were arrested.
Many major roads and highways were blocked as protesters took to the streets in the north, south and center of the country, causing severe traffic around Israel.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a video that protesters around the country should stop blocking major roads, and that the problems the Ethiopian community is facing need to be solved while respecting the law.
"We all mourn the tragic death of the teen Solomon Tekah, " said Netanyahu. "We embrace the family. We embrace the Ethiopian community. These are not empty words. We know there are problems that need solving, and we need to work hard to solve them, but I ask one thing of you — stop blocking roads."
"We are a country with a rule of law," continued the prime minister. "We won't tolerate the blocking of roads. I ask of you, let us solve problems together while respecting the law."
Earlier Tuesday, hunderds blocked Highway 70 near Yokneam, in the north, and others the blocked the central Azrieli Junction in Tel Aviv. At Kiryat Ata Junction in the Haifa district, police removed protesters who burned tires and a car and blocked a major road. Nineteen people were arrested.
In Azrieli Junction, several cars windshields were smashed by protesters and car was set fire to. Near the city of Netanya, a police car was set on fire.
Some 50,000 people were stuck in traffic across Israel following the protests.
The Israel Lanes Company said that even when protests end, it is bound to take hours to clean roads and highways from rocks and other hurled objects.
One policeman was moderately wounded when he was hit in the head by a stone at a protest near the city of Hadera. He was hospitalized.
A 28-year-old protester was hit while blocking Highway 431 near the city of Lod in a hit and run accident. He was evacuated to a nearby hospital.
In Afula, protesters gathered in Ha'atsmaut Square and clashed with police forces, hurling objects at them. In Petah Tikva, a protest march also took place Tuesday evening. In Netanya, a march blocked Route 2, the coastal road.
Roads were also blocked in the northern city of Karmiel, as well as in the southern cities of Ashdod and Ashkelon.
Protesters also took to the streets in Jerusalem and near the city of Gedera.
Police forces were containing the protests, however, in several locations crowd dispersal methods were used. Disruptions and protests are expected to take place throughout the seven days of mourning for Solomon Tekah.
Earlier Tuesday, Hundreds of people turned out for Tekah's funeral. "Give me my boy back," said Solomon's father Worka Tekah as he delivered his eulogy at the start of the funeral procession to Tel Regev cemetery on the outskirts of Haifa.
Tekah was shot dead in the Haifa suburb of Kiryat Haim when the police officer pulled out his gun while trying to break up a street brawl.
The unnamed officer, who was walking with his family when the incident occurred, was detained and is currently under house arrest.
The policeman said that he opened fire due to concerns for his and his family's safety.
Mass protests raged in several locations around the Israel on Tuesday evening, following the funeral for 19-year-old Solomon Tekah, who was shot dead by an off-duty policeman in a Haifa suburb on Sunday. Dozens were injured, of whom 47 police officers, and 60 were arrested.
Many major roads and highways were blocked as protesters took to the streets in the north, south and center of the country, causing severe traffic around Israel.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a video that protesters around the country should stop blocking major roads, and that the problems the Ethiopian community is facing need to be solved while respecting the law.
"We all mourn the tragic death of the teen Solomon Tekah, " said Netanyahu. "We embrace the family. We embrace the Ethiopian community. These are not empty words. We know there are problems that need solving, and we need to work hard to solve them, but I ask one thing of you — stop blocking roads."
"We are a country with a rule of law," continued the prime minister. "We won't tolerate the blocking of roads. I ask of you, let us solve problems together while respecting the law."
Earlier Tuesday, hunderds blocked Highway 70 near Yokneam, in the north, and others the blocked the central Azrieli Junction in Tel Aviv. At Kiryat Ata Junction in the Haifa district, police removed protesters who burned tires and a car and blocked a major road. Nineteen people were arrested.
In Azrieli Junction, several cars windshields were smashed by protesters and car was set fire to. Near the city of Netanya, a police car was set on fire.
Some 50,000 people were stuck in traffic across Israel following the protests.
The Israel Lanes Company said that even when protests end, it is bound to take hours to clean roads and highways from rocks and other hurled objects.
One policeman was moderately wounded when he was hit in the head by a stone at a protest near the city of Hadera. He was hospitalized.
A 28-year-old protester was hit while blocking Highway 431 near the city of Lod in a hit and run accident. He was evacuated to a nearby hospital.
In Afula, protesters gathered in Ha'atsmaut Square and clashed with police forces, hurling objects at them. In Petah Tikva, a protest march also took place Tuesday evening. In Netanya, a march blocked Route 2, the coastal road.
Roads were also blocked in the northern city of Karmiel, as well as in the southern cities of Ashdod and Ashkelon.
Protesters also took to the streets in Jerusalem and near the city of Gedera.
Police forces were containing the protests, however, in several locations crowd dispersal methods were used. Disruptions and protests are expected to take place throughout the seven days of mourning for Solomon Tekah.
Earlier Tuesday, Hundreds of people turned out for Tekah's funeral. "Give me my boy back," said Solomon's father Worka Tekah as he delivered his eulogy at the start of the funeral procession to Tel Regev cemetery on the outskirts of Haifa.
Tekah was shot dead in the Haifa suburb of Kiryat Haim when the police officer pulled out his gun while trying to break up a street brawl.
The unnamed officer, who was walking with his family when the incident occurred, was detained and is currently under house arrest.
The policeman said that he opened fire due to concerns for his and his family's safety.
'Give me my boy back,' says father of 19-year-old Solomon Tekah as he is laid to rest in Haifa; family friend: We didn't pay such a dear price to get to this beloved country so that our children could die at an early age... murdered in front of their brothers
Hundreds of people turned out Tuesday for the funeral of 19-year-old Solomon Tekah, who was shot dead by an off-duty policeman in a Haifa suburb on Sunday.
"Give me my boy back," said Solomon's father Worka Tekah as he delivered his eulogy at the start of the funeral procession to Tel Regev cemetery on the outskirts of the city.
Tekah was shot dead in the Haifa suburb of Kiryat Haim when the police officer pulled out his gun while trying to break up a street brawl.
The unnamed officer, who was walking with his family when the incident occurred, was detained and is currently under house arrest.
The policeman said that he opened fire due to concerns for his and his family's safety.
Hundreds from the Ethiopian community in Israel turned out for the eulogies ahead of the burial.
"This is such great pain that cannot be contained," said Rabbi Moshe Baruch at the start of the funeral.
"We see the father, the whole family; it is such great pain, there is no way to console you."
Family friend Asaf Kovna said: "Worka wants to be, is asking to be the last parent to bury his son. We are good soldiers, we are moral people. We did not come to Israel so that our children could be killed.
"We did not make this journey and pay such a dear price to get to this beloved country so that our children would die at an early age and be murdered in front of their brothers, in front of children."
"What hope is there for these children who saw this murder in cold blood?" Kovna said. "What kind of lives do they have? How many scars does this community bear?
"How many people have already lost loved ones? I ask for forgiveness from Solomon, that we were not there to protect him, we abandoned him and a policeman came and killed him. In the name of the young people too, I ask forgiveness. They could have arrested him, jailed him. They are experts at that," Kovna said.
"His father was prepared to sit in jail, but not to stand in front of his son's body," he said. Referring to the police officer who shot Solomon, Kovna called for the authorities "not to release the murderer."
Also present at the funeral were new Meretz leader Nitzan Horowitz and the head of Rambam Hospital in Haifa, where Solomon's mother is employed.
The funeral comes a day after hundreds of members of the Ethiopian community took to the streets across Israel in protest at Tekah's killing, the second such incident this year.
Demonstrations took place throughout the country Monday evening, and several main roads and intersections were blocked. Three demonstrators and three police officers were lightly wounded in the central demonstration in Haifa. About 10 other demonstrators were treated at the scene.
Dozens of protesters also gathered Monday night outside the home of Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan in Kiryat Ono, near Tel Aviv.
The protesters held signs reading: "Solomon Tekah went off for his summer break and came back in a coffin" and "This was an extrajudicial execution."
Hundreds of people turned out Tuesday for the funeral of 19-year-old Solomon Tekah, who was shot dead by an off-duty policeman in a Haifa suburb on Sunday.
"Give me my boy back," said Solomon's father Worka Tekah as he delivered his eulogy at the start of the funeral procession to Tel Regev cemetery on the outskirts of the city.
Tekah was shot dead in the Haifa suburb of Kiryat Haim when the police officer pulled out his gun while trying to break up a street brawl.
The unnamed officer, who was walking with his family when the incident occurred, was detained and is currently under house arrest.
The policeman said that he opened fire due to concerns for his and his family's safety.
Hundreds from the Ethiopian community in Israel turned out for the eulogies ahead of the burial.
"This is such great pain that cannot be contained," said Rabbi Moshe Baruch at the start of the funeral.
"We see the father, the whole family; it is such great pain, there is no way to console you."
Family friend Asaf Kovna said: "Worka wants to be, is asking to be the last parent to bury his son. We are good soldiers, we are moral people. We did not come to Israel so that our children could be killed.
"We did not make this journey and pay such a dear price to get to this beloved country so that our children would die at an early age and be murdered in front of their brothers, in front of children."
"What hope is there for these children who saw this murder in cold blood?" Kovna said. "What kind of lives do they have? How many scars does this community bear?
"How many people have already lost loved ones? I ask for forgiveness from Solomon, that we were not there to protect him, we abandoned him and a policeman came and killed him. In the name of the young people too, I ask forgiveness. They could have arrested him, jailed him. They are experts at that," Kovna said.
"His father was prepared to sit in jail, but not to stand in front of his son's body," he said. Referring to the police officer who shot Solomon, Kovna called for the authorities "not to release the murderer."
Also present at the funeral were new Meretz leader Nitzan Horowitz and the head of Rambam Hospital in Haifa, where Solomon's mother is employed.
The funeral comes a day after hundreds of members of the Ethiopian community took to the streets across Israel in protest at Tekah's killing, the second such incident this year.
Demonstrations took place throughout the country Monday evening, and several main roads and intersections were blocked. Three demonstrators and three police officers were lightly wounded in the central demonstration in Haifa. About 10 other demonstrators were treated at the scene.
Dozens of protesters also gathered Monday night outside the home of Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan in Kiryat Ono, near Tel Aviv.
The protesters held signs reading: "Solomon Tekah went off for his summer break and came back in a coffin" and "This was an extrajudicial execution."
Members of the community warn that situation at boiling point as hundreds protest across the country after 19-year-old shot dead by off-duty police officer in Haifa; MK blasts minister for ignoring situation
The Ethiopian Israeli community has reached breaking point over the deaths of its members at the hands of the police, three of its prominent members say, two days after 19-year-old Solomon Tekah was shot and killed by an off-duty policeman in a Haifa suburb.
"From this point, nothing will be the same," says Rachel Gil Yosef, one of the organizers of the protest following the shooting of Yehuda Biagda at the beginning of the year.
Demonstrations over Tekah's killing were held throughout the country Monday evening, and several main roads and intersections were blocked. Three demonstrators and three police officers were lightly wounded in the central demonstration in Haifa. About 10 other demonstrators were treated at the scene.
Gil Yosef said: "When we protested the killing of Yehuda Biadga, we said that if we did not treat the root of the problem, we would be crying for more boys, and here we are. When the authorities won't deal with it and the public is not invested in it, we count our dead children. We are living in fear, parents are scared for their children."
"It bothers everyone, and I keep hearing about people who say that the protest must go up a level, and I agree because this has become part of the routine.
"I do not trust this organization to do something to build trust like putting this policeman on trial. No PR messages will help - they will keep on lying."
Attorney Elias Inbram said: "The policemen seem to believe they are living in Harlem and that we of Ethiopian origin have arrived in a land flowing with milk and honey. There are quite a few young people who are afraid to walk down the street.
"Those of Ethiopian origin have demonstrated so far in a moderate, quiet and nonviolent manner, but after Yehuda Biadga and Solomon Teka their patience is over and relations between them and the Israel Police are getting worse.
"For example, the issue of a camera for every officer – it doesn’t exist. If the officer was on duty and had a camera, they could have decoded it faster, and if he was not on duty, why would he be so reckless?
"You see something, call the station, call police to take care of it. The definition of the word dangerous is being exploited."
"Blacks have become an easy target and the darker you are, the more dangerous you are," says Avi Yalou, says another leading activist.
"When a policeman feels in danger, it's not because he had stones thrown at him, but simply because black people were standing in front of him. This community has given its blood for society and state, but racism leads to police opening fire in broad daylight at citizens of Ethiopian origin. "
He added: "I do not want their apology, because that will not bring back Solomon or Yehuda or any of those boys who died because of an encounter with the police. I want the next police officer to think for a moment before he puts his hand on his gun and starts firing at civilians."
Blue and White MK Pnina Tamano-Shata slammed police brutality in dealing with the protests that erupted across the country on Monday evening and blasted Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan for not taking the demonstrators seriously.
"I regret that what is happening now is a loss of control by the police who chose to fire (stun grenades) directly at children and adults," she said.
"I wish all the wounded a speedy recovery, but the community is fighting for living in security here in our country. We have been experiencing terrible upheaval since the late Solomon Tekah was shot and the policeman's speedy release to house arrest.
"Despite my attempt to calm the situation in a dialogue with Public Security Minister Erdan, he was not prepared to answer the phone. Apparently he went to sleep while our children were demonstrating and the situation was getting worse."
The Ethiopian Israeli community has reached breaking point over the deaths of its members at the hands of the police, three of its prominent members say, two days after 19-year-old Solomon Tekah was shot and killed by an off-duty policeman in a Haifa suburb.
"From this point, nothing will be the same," says Rachel Gil Yosef, one of the organizers of the protest following the shooting of Yehuda Biagda at the beginning of the year.
Demonstrations over Tekah's killing were held throughout the country Monday evening, and several main roads and intersections were blocked. Three demonstrators and three police officers were lightly wounded in the central demonstration in Haifa. About 10 other demonstrators were treated at the scene.
Gil Yosef said: "When we protested the killing of Yehuda Biadga, we said that if we did not treat the root of the problem, we would be crying for more boys, and here we are. When the authorities won't deal with it and the public is not invested in it, we count our dead children. We are living in fear, parents are scared for their children."
"It bothers everyone, and I keep hearing about people who say that the protest must go up a level, and I agree because this has become part of the routine.
"I do not trust this organization to do something to build trust like putting this policeman on trial. No PR messages will help - they will keep on lying."
Attorney Elias Inbram said: "The policemen seem to believe they are living in Harlem and that we of Ethiopian origin have arrived in a land flowing with milk and honey. There are quite a few young people who are afraid to walk down the street.
"Those of Ethiopian origin have demonstrated so far in a moderate, quiet and nonviolent manner, but after Yehuda Biadga and Solomon Teka their patience is over and relations between them and the Israel Police are getting worse.
"For example, the issue of a camera for every officer – it doesn’t exist. If the officer was on duty and had a camera, they could have decoded it faster, and if he was not on duty, why would he be so reckless?
"You see something, call the station, call police to take care of it. The definition of the word dangerous is being exploited."
"Blacks have become an easy target and the darker you are, the more dangerous you are," says Avi Yalou, says another leading activist.
"When a policeman feels in danger, it's not because he had stones thrown at him, but simply because black people were standing in front of him. This community has given its blood for society and state, but racism leads to police opening fire in broad daylight at citizens of Ethiopian origin. "
He added: "I do not want their apology, because that will not bring back Solomon or Yehuda or any of those boys who died because of an encounter with the police. I want the next police officer to think for a moment before he puts his hand on his gun and starts firing at civilians."
Blue and White MK Pnina Tamano-Shata slammed police brutality in dealing with the protests that erupted across the country on Monday evening and blasted Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan for not taking the demonstrators seriously.
"I regret that what is happening now is a loss of control by the police who chose to fire (stun grenades) directly at children and adults," she said.
"I wish all the wounded a speedy recovery, but the community is fighting for living in security here in our country. We have been experiencing terrible upheaval since the late Solomon Tekah was shot and the policeman's speedy release to house arrest.
"Despite my attempt to calm the situation in a dialogue with Public Security Minister Erdan, he was not prepared to answer the phone. Apparently he went to sleep while our children were demonstrating and the situation was getting worse."
Israel’s Channel 7 said that the Israeli government asked Britain recently to take a decision criminalizing the Hamas Movement and the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement.
According to the channel, this request was made during a meeting in Tel Aviv on Monday between Israeli public security minister Gilad Erdan and British home secretary Sajid Javid.
Such request by Erdan regarding Hamas is considered idiotic because Hamas is already among other 74 groups outlawed by the British regime.
According to the channel, this request was made during a meeting in Tel Aviv on Monday between Israeli public security minister Gilad Erdan and British home secretary Sajid Javid.
Such request by Erdan regarding Hamas is considered idiotic because Hamas is already among other 74 groups outlawed by the British regime.
1 july 2019
Demonstrations from Haifa to Be'er Sheva over death of 19-year-old Solomon Tekah, shot by policeman who said he feared for his and his family's safety as he intervened in street brawl; Netanyahu expresses regret over killing
Hundreds of members of Israel's Ethiopian community and their supporters took to the streets across Israel on Monday, protesting the killing of an Ethiopian Israeli teenager by an off-duty policeman a day earlier.
The largest protest was taking place in the Haifa suburb of Kiryat Ata, where more than 1,000 people had been blocking the Histadrut Junction since the morning hours.
Similar protests were taking place in Rehovot in central Israel and the southern cities of Be'er Sheva and Ashkelon. In Ashdod, protesters blocked the southern entrance to the city, as well as main roads in the area.
Solomon Tekah, 19, was shot dead Sunday evening in the Haifa suburb of Kiryat Haim by an off-duty police officer who pulled out his gun while trying to break up a street brawl.
The unnamed officer, who was walking with his family when the incident occurred, was detained and is currently under house arrest.
The policeman said that he opened fire due to concerns for his and his family's safety.
Dozens of protesters also gathered Monday night outside the home of Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan in Kiryat Ono, near Tel Aviv.
The protesters held signs reading: "Solomon Tekah went off for his summer holiday and came back in a coffin" and "This was an extrajudicial execution."
Demonstrations also took place in Rishon Letzion in central Israel and Netivot in the south.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday expressed regret over Tekah's death, calling it a "tragic loss of life."
"I spoke to the acting police commissioner (Moti Cohen) today, who promised me that we would make every effort to reach the truth as quickly as possible," Netanyahu said.
"The Ethiopian community is dear to all of us. We have made great efforts in recent years to integrate it into Israeli society, and we still have much work to do."
This is not the first time this year that a police officer has shot dead a member of the Ethiopian community, sparking mass protests.
In January, Yehuda Biagda, a 24-year-old man with mental health problems, was shot and killed in Bat Yam, near Tel Aviv, by a policeman who said that he felt threatened by the knife that Biagda was wielding, although eyewitnesses said that the two were some distance apart when the police officer opened fire.
The policeman's attorney said at the time that his client had opened fire as a "last resort", while Biadga's family strongly accused the officer of having "an easy hand on the trigger."
Related: 'If you're black in Israel, you're scared to walk down the street'
Hundreds of members of Israel's Ethiopian community and their supporters took to the streets across Israel on Monday, protesting the killing of an Ethiopian Israeli teenager by an off-duty policeman a day earlier.
The largest protest was taking place in the Haifa suburb of Kiryat Ata, where more than 1,000 people had been blocking the Histadrut Junction since the morning hours.
Similar protests were taking place in Rehovot in central Israel and the southern cities of Be'er Sheva and Ashkelon. In Ashdod, protesters blocked the southern entrance to the city, as well as main roads in the area.
Solomon Tekah, 19, was shot dead Sunday evening in the Haifa suburb of Kiryat Haim by an off-duty police officer who pulled out his gun while trying to break up a street brawl.
The unnamed officer, who was walking with his family when the incident occurred, was detained and is currently under house arrest.
The policeman said that he opened fire due to concerns for his and his family's safety.
Dozens of protesters also gathered Monday night outside the home of Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan in Kiryat Ono, near Tel Aviv.
The protesters held signs reading: "Solomon Tekah went off for his summer holiday and came back in a coffin" and "This was an extrajudicial execution."
Demonstrations also took place in Rishon Letzion in central Israel and Netivot in the south.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday expressed regret over Tekah's death, calling it a "tragic loss of life."
"I spoke to the acting police commissioner (Moti Cohen) today, who promised me that we would make every effort to reach the truth as quickly as possible," Netanyahu said.
"The Ethiopian community is dear to all of us. We have made great efforts in recent years to integrate it into Israeli society, and we still have much work to do."
This is not the first time this year that a police officer has shot dead a member of the Ethiopian community, sparking mass protests.
In January, Yehuda Biagda, a 24-year-old man with mental health problems, was shot and killed in Bat Yam, near Tel Aviv, by a policeman who said that he felt threatened by the knife that Biagda was wielding, although eyewitnesses said that the two were some distance apart when the police officer opened fire.
The policeman's attorney said at the time that his client had opened fire as a "last resort", while Biadga's family strongly accused the officer of having "an easy hand on the trigger."
Related: 'If you're black in Israel, you're scared to walk down the street'
30 june 2019
By Asa Winstanley
The Haifa-based Palestinian human rights group Adalah has done a lot of important work over the years. Its name is Arabic for “justice”. Much of Adalah’s work focuses on the rights of Palestinian citizens of Israel, or the “Palestinians of the 1948 territories” as they often describe themselves.
The group maintains an important database chronicling more than 65 laws in Israel which systematically discriminate against 20 per cent of its population. It is a fact that Israel has always been an apartheid state, not only since the Knesset passed the openly racist “Jewish Nation State Law” last summer.
That new measure did not really change much in terms of the letter of Israeli law. What it did do, though, was to explain clearly, in black and white, the motives behind much of Israel’s existing racist laws. It made things clearer, in other words, sending a signal to the Palestinian people that the historic land of Palestine – what the law terms the “Land of Israel” – belongs to the Jews alone, and no one else.
This clarity explains some of the tactical disagreements with the law that many pro-Zionist liberals had. Liberal Zionists do not disagree on the racist principle that “the right to national self-determination in the state of Israel is unique to the Jewish people,” as the new law claims. Rather, they disagree with spelling this out in such brazen terms, leading to adverse international publicity, and the resultant decline in long term political support.
However, the naked racism of the Jewish Nation State Law is in reality only the latest such measure. As Adalah documents in detail in its database, the trail of these racist laws goes back to the very foundation of the state.
Take Israel’s 1950 “Law of Return,” for example. This law bestows upon any Jewish person in the world the right to migrate to the land of Palestine and automatically become a citizen of Israel. It applies to the children and grandchildren of Jews, as well as to their spouses, and the spouses of their children and grandchildren.
No comparable Israeli law exists guaranteeing the same rights for Palestinians, who are, after all, the indigenous people of the land. On the contrary, Palestinian refugees – expelled by force by Zionist militias over the course of several years starting in 1947 – are still excluded, despite having the right to return under international laws and conventions.
In Israel, though, laws were passed to ensure that the refugees never did or could return, starting with the 1950 “Absentees’ Property Law”. This essentially provided a legal fig leaf for the mass theft of land, homes, bank accounts and other Palestinian property on a grand scale.
The 800,000 or so Palestinian refugees – who were expelled by force, remember – were declared to be “absentees” under Israeli law, and their lands and properties were confiscated. Hundreds of Palestinian villages had in any case already been bulldozed and dynamited, wiping them off the map. Thus Israel always has been, and remains, an intrinsically racist, apartheid state.
Adalah also does lots of important work documenting Israel’s human rights abuses in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, the parts of historic Palestine which Israel invaded and has occupied illegally since 1967. Some of this work is detailed in the racist laws database I referred to above, which also lists Israeli laws which discriminate against the Palestinians living under Israeli occupation since the June 1967 Six Day War.
Recently, Adalah obtained official Israeli documents revealing the military’s “rules of engagement”, which it uses to justify its violence against Palestinian protesters, specifically in Gaza in this case. The rules show that the Israeli military has officially ordained to itself the right to shoot unarmed Palestinian protesters in the back, people it smears and slanders as “rioters”.
Those organizing the Great March of Return protests since March last year can be targeted even when posing no threat to Israeli soldiers; even when walking away. As Adalah points out, “Israeli snipers… may open fire with live ammunition on ‘key instigators’ or ‘key rioters’ even when they are no longer participating in the protest or are resting.”
Many of the protesters in Gaza are children. Adalah says that since the marches began last year, Israel has killed 207 Palestinians during protests, including 44 children. A staggering 16,831 Palestinians have also been injured, 3,905 of them children.
The documents were presented during hearings at Israel’s high court. Disgustingly, the court ruled last year that the army was permitted to use live rounds against unarmed protesters. This is a measure that it would never sanction against Jewish protesters.
Adalah attorney Suhad Bishara explained that Israel’s fictional category of “key instigators” was “created retroactively in order to justify the shootings of people who posed no real and immediate danger to Israeli soldiers or civilians. The military’s document attempts to explain away the indiscriminate shooting of unarmed demonstrators which results from a total disregard for human life.”
The apartheid state of Israel should be held to account for such crimes against humanity.
- Asa Winstanley is an investigative journalist living in London who writes about Palestine and the Middle East. He has been visiting Palestine since 2004 and is originally from south Wales. He writes for the award-winning Palestinian news site The Electronic Intifada where he is an associate editor and also a weekly column for the Middle East Monitor.
The Haifa-based Palestinian human rights group Adalah has done a lot of important work over the years. Its name is Arabic for “justice”. Much of Adalah’s work focuses on the rights of Palestinian citizens of Israel, or the “Palestinians of the 1948 territories” as they often describe themselves.
The group maintains an important database chronicling more than 65 laws in Israel which systematically discriminate against 20 per cent of its population. It is a fact that Israel has always been an apartheid state, not only since the Knesset passed the openly racist “Jewish Nation State Law” last summer.
That new measure did not really change much in terms of the letter of Israeli law. What it did do, though, was to explain clearly, in black and white, the motives behind much of Israel’s existing racist laws. It made things clearer, in other words, sending a signal to the Palestinian people that the historic land of Palestine – what the law terms the “Land of Israel” – belongs to the Jews alone, and no one else.
This clarity explains some of the tactical disagreements with the law that many pro-Zionist liberals had. Liberal Zionists do not disagree on the racist principle that “the right to national self-determination in the state of Israel is unique to the Jewish people,” as the new law claims. Rather, they disagree with spelling this out in such brazen terms, leading to adverse international publicity, and the resultant decline in long term political support.
However, the naked racism of the Jewish Nation State Law is in reality only the latest such measure. As Adalah documents in detail in its database, the trail of these racist laws goes back to the very foundation of the state.
Take Israel’s 1950 “Law of Return,” for example. This law bestows upon any Jewish person in the world the right to migrate to the land of Palestine and automatically become a citizen of Israel. It applies to the children and grandchildren of Jews, as well as to their spouses, and the spouses of their children and grandchildren.
No comparable Israeli law exists guaranteeing the same rights for Palestinians, who are, after all, the indigenous people of the land. On the contrary, Palestinian refugees – expelled by force by Zionist militias over the course of several years starting in 1947 – are still excluded, despite having the right to return under international laws and conventions.
In Israel, though, laws were passed to ensure that the refugees never did or could return, starting with the 1950 “Absentees’ Property Law”. This essentially provided a legal fig leaf for the mass theft of land, homes, bank accounts and other Palestinian property on a grand scale.
The 800,000 or so Palestinian refugees – who were expelled by force, remember – were declared to be “absentees” under Israeli law, and their lands and properties were confiscated. Hundreds of Palestinian villages had in any case already been bulldozed and dynamited, wiping them off the map. Thus Israel always has been, and remains, an intrinsically racist, apartheid state.
Adalah also does lots of important work documenting Israel’s human rights abuses in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, the parts of historic Palestine which Israel invaded and has occupied illegally since 1967. Some of this work is detailed in the racist laws database I referred to above, which also lists Israeli laws which discriminate against the Palestinians living under Israeli occupation since the June 1967 Six Day War.
Recently, Adalah obtained official Israeli documents revealing the military’s “rules of engagement”, which it uses to justify its violence against Palestinian protesters, specifically in Gaza in this case. The rules show that the Israeli military has officially ordained to itself the right to shoot unarmed Palestinian protesters in the back, people it smears and slanders as “rioters”.
Those organizing the Great March of Return protests since March last year can be targeted even when posing no threat to Israeli soldiers; even when walking away. As Adalah points out, “Israeli snipers… may open fire with live ammunition on ‘key instigators’ or ‘key rioters’ even when they are no longer participating in the protest or are resting.”
Many of the protesters in Gaza are children. Adalah says that since the marches began last year, Israel has killed 207 Palestinians during protests, including 44 children. A staggering 16,831 Palestinians have also been injured, 3,905 of them children.
The documents were presented during hearings at Israel’s high court. Disgustingly, the court ruled last year that the army was permitted to use live rounds against unarmed protesters. This is a measure that it would never sanction against Jewish protesters.
Adalah attorney Suhad Bishara explained that Israel’s fictional category of “key instigators” was “created retroactively in order to justify the shootings of people who posed no real and immediate danger to Israeli soldiers or civilians. The military’s document attempts to explain away the indiscriminate shooting of unarmed demonstrators which results from a total disregard for human life.”
The apartheid state of Israel should be held to account for such crimes against humanity.
- Asa Winstanley is an investigative journalist living in London who writes about Palestine and the Middle East. He has been visiting Palestine since 2004 and is originally from south Wales. He writes for the award-winning Palestinian news site The Electronic Intifada where he is an associate editor and also a weekly column for the Middle East Monitor.
