Jul 22, 2008
JERUSALEM - Israel's defence minister, Ehud Barak, yesterday promised an inquiry after video footage showed an Israeli soldier shooting baton rounds at a Palestinian detainee who was blindfolded and cuffed."The Israeli military will investigate the incident, learn its lessons and hold those responsible to account," he told MPs from his Labour party. "Warriors do not behave like this."
The advocate general, Brigadier General Avichai Mendelblit, is said to have ordered a military police inquiry after he saw the footage released on Sunday by the Israeli human rights group, B'Tselem. The incident happened on July 7 in Nil'in village. Several other soldiers were present, including a lieutenant colonel who was holding the arm of the Palestinian man.
The man shot, Ashraf Abu Rahma, 27, was treated for an injury to his toe and was then released.
It was the latest incident in which video footage has been used to highlight violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank. B'Tselem has been running a project since January last year in which it has given out around 100 video cameras to Palestinians to allow them to film human rights abuses in the West Bank. The Nil'in footage was filmed on a private camera by a 17-year-old girl who lives in the village. B'Tselem has now given her one of its cameras as part of its Shooting Back project.
Sarit Michaeli, spokeswoman for B'Tselem, said the footage was intended as much for an Israeli audience as for an international one. She said spoken or written testimony from Palestinians involved in such cases was often given little weight in official police or military investigations into apparent abuses, but video footage was much more powerful.
"I see no better way of encouraging accountability among members of the security forces," said Michaeli.
(c) 2008 The Guardian
Join Us: News for people demanding a better world
Common Dreams is powered by optimists who believe in the power of informed and engaged citizens to ignite and enact change to make the world a better place. We're hundreds of thousands strong, but every single supporter makes the difference. Your contribution supports this bold media model—free, independent, and dedicated to reporting the facts every day. Stand with us in the fight for economic equality, social justice, human rights, and a more sustainable future. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover the issues the corporate media never will. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
JERUSALEM - Israel's defence minister, Ehud Barak, yesterday promised an inquiry after video footage showed an Israeli soldier shooting baton rounds at a Palestinian detainee who was blindfolded and cuffed."The Israeli military will investigate the incident, learn its lessons and hold those responsible to account," he told MPs from his Labour party. "Warriors do not behave like this."
The advocate general, Brigadier General Avichai Mendelblit, is said to have ordered a military police inquiry after he saw the footage released on Sunday by the Israeli human rights group, B'Tselem. The incident happened on July 7 in Nil'in village. Several other soldiers were present, including a lieutenant colonel who was holding the arm of the Palestinian man.
The man shot, Ashraf Abu Rahma, 27, was treated for an injury to his toe and was then released.
It was the latest incident in which video footage has been used to highlight violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank. B'Tselem has been running a project since January last year in which it has given out around 100 video cameras to Palestinians to allow them to film human rights abuses in the West Bank. The Nil'in footage was filmed on a private camera by a 17-year-old girl who lives in the village. B'Tselem has now given her one of its cameras as part of its Shooting Back project.
Sarit Michaeli, spokeswoman for B'Tselem, said the footage was intended as much for an Israeli audience as for an international one. She said spoken or written testimony from Palestinians involved in such cases was often given little weight in official police or military investigations into apparent abuses, but video footage was much more powerful.
"I see no better way of encouraging accountability among members of the security forces," said Michaeli.
(c) 2008 The Guardian
JERUSALEM - Israel's defence minister, Ehud Barak, yesterday promised an inquiry after video footage showed an Israeli soldier shooting baton rounds at a Palestinian detainee who was blindfolded and cuffed."The Israeli military will investigate the incident, learn its lessons and hold those responsible to account," he told MPs from his Labour party. "Warriors do not behave like this."
The advocate general, Brigadier General Avichai Mendelblit, is said to have ordered a military police inquiry after he saw the footage released on Sunday by the Israeli human rights group, B'Tselem. The incident happened on July 7 in Nil'in village. Several other soldiers were present, including a lieutenant colonel who was holding the arm of the Palestinian man.
The man shot, Ashraf Abu Rahma, 27, was treated for an injury to his toe and was then released.
It was the latest incident in which video footage has been used to highlight violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank. B'Tselem has been running a project since January last year in which it has given out around 100 video cameras to Palestinians to allow them to film human rights abuses in the West Bank. The Nil'in footage was filmed on a private camera by a 17-year-old girl who lives in the village. B'Tselem has now given her one of its cameras as part of its Shooting Back project.
Sarit Michaeli, spokeswoman for B'Tselem, said the footage was intended as much for an Israeli audience as for an international one. She said spoken or written testimony from Palestinians involved in such cases was often given little weight in official police or military investigations into apparent abuses, but video footage was much more powerful.
"I see no better way of encouraging accountability among members of the security forces," said Michaeli.
(c) 2008 The Guardian
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.