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Date of publication: 27 December, 2015 | http://www.alaraby.co.uk/
Over the course of the past few weeks,
Israeli political leaders have given carte blanche to their military to
kill anyone they see as a threat.
On December 17, Naseer was driving from Nablus to Ramallah. Light
rain fell as he approached the Israeli military’s checkpoint at Huwwara.
In front of him was another car, moving cautiously. About fifty meters
before that car was an Israeli military vehicle. Caution is the order of
the day in the vicinity of the Israeli military. No sense in provoking
their ire. Naseer kept some distance between the cars. They were moving
slowly.
Beside the road, on the grass off the sidewalk, a young boy walked in the same direction of the cars. Naseer observed that the boy seemed to be on the grass to avoid the puddles on the sidewalk.
The Israeli military vehicle braked. An order must have come from the soldiers. The boy put his hands up. Naseer did not hear them but saw him obey. The car in front of his began to go around the military vehicle. Naseer followed. He saw the boy with his hands up. The next minute, in his rear view mirror, Naseer saw the boy on the ground. All this happened in a split second. One minute the boy was standing with his hands up, and the next minute he was dead on the ground.
Naseer stopped his car, as did the driver of the car in front of him. The two men exchanged information. They had both witnessed an execution. There was no opportunity to approach the Israeli soldiers, who had already cordoned off the area.
Not long after, Israeli state media announced that their military had killed Abdullah Hussein Nasasra (age 15) from Beit Furik (near Nablus). The Israeli military said that Nasasra had “charged the forces while armed with a knife.”
Naseer said that he saw no knife. Nor did he see Nasasra charge the military men. They had guns trained on him. Why would he try to attack them with a knife?
Over the course of the past few weeks, Israeli military and security forces have used deadly force against a number of children whom they accuse of knife attacks. Israeli political leaders have given carte blanche to their military to kill anyone they see as a threat. Interior Security Minister Gilad Arden said, “Every terrorist should know that he will not survive the attack he is about to commit.” Yair Lapid, former Minister of Finance in the Israeli government, concurred, “You have to shoot to kill anyone who pulls out a knife or a screwdriver.” Since the Israeli military is the Judge, Executioner and Investigator of these incidents, there is no accountability for them.
When Kamal Badran Qabalan drove his ambulance to the scene, the Israelis blocked him from access to the body. There will be no independent investigation of this death. The miasma of Israeli propaganda – terrorist, knife – has already covered over the facts. Naseer says he is ready to testify against the Israeli military. But how does he do it? There will be no trial. The case will close quietly. Naseer is a distinguished man. His eyes are kind and honest. His voice is defiant as he tells me the story – “I saw them kill a boy,” he says. But what can Naseer do? His body language bespeaks the Occupation. There is futility here beside the defiance. http://www.alaraby.co.uk/english/comment/2015/12/28/palestinian-lives-matter
Beside the road, on the grass off the sidewalk, a young boy walked in the same direction of the cars. Naseer observed that the boy seemed to be on the grass to avoid the puddles on the sidewalk.
The Israeli military vehicle braked. An order must have come from the soldiers. The boy put his hands up. Naseer did not hear them but saw him obey. The car in front of his began to go around the military vehicle. Naseer followed. He saw the boy with his hands up. The next minute, in his rear view mirror, Naseer saw the boy on the ground. All this happened in a split second. One minute the boy was standing with his hands up, and the next minute he was dead on the ground.
Naseer stopped his car, as did the driver of the car in front of him. The two men exchanged information. They had both witnessed an execution. There was no opportunity to approach the Israeli soldiers, who had already cordoned off the area.
Not long after, Israeli state media announced that their military had killed Abdullah Hussein Nasasra (age 15) from Beit Furik (near Nablus). The Israeli military said that Nasasra had “charged the forces while armed with a knife.”
Naseer said that he saw no knife. Nor did he see Nasasra charge the military men. They had guns trained on him. Why would he try to attack them with a knife?
Over the course of the past few weeks, Israeli military and security forces have used deadly force against a number of children whom they accuse of knife attacks. Israeli political leaders have given carte blanche to their military to kill anyone they see as a threat. Interior Security Minister Gilad Arden said, “Every terrorist should know that he will not survive the attack he is about to commit.” Yair Lapid, former Minister of Finance in the Israeli government, concurred, “You have to shoot to kill anyone who pulls out a knife or a screwdriver.” Since the Israeli military is the Judge, Executioner and Investigator of these incidents, there is no accountability for them.
When Kamal Badran Qabalan drove his ambulance to the scene, the Israelis blocked him from access to the body. There will be no independent investigation of this death. The miasma of Israeli propaganda – terrorist, knife – has already covered over the facts. Naseer says he is ready to testify against the Israeli military. But how does he do it? There will be no trial. The case will close quietly. Naseer is a distinguished man. His eyes are kind and honest. His voice is defiant as he tells me the story – “I saw them kill a boy,” he says. But what can Naseer do? His body language bespeaks the Occupation. There is futility here beside the defiance. http://www.alaraby.co.uk/english/comment/2015/12/28/palestinian-lives-matter
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