Video Shows Palestinian Beaten to Death by Israeli Soldiers
by Stephen Lendman (stephenlendman.org – Home – Stephen Lendman)
A previous article discussed the cold-blooded murder of Jericho resident Yassin al-Saradih – dying hours after Israeli soldiers unjustifiably shot, brutalized and arrested him.
He committed no crimes nor threatened anyone. He was guilty of being Palestinian in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Palestinian Committee of Prisoners’ Affairs head Issa Qaraqe said he was tortured and beaten to death in custody – calling what happened “a crime, execution and premeditated murder at the hands of occupation forces, which reflect the level of brutality and terrorism of the soldiers.”
B’Tselem posted video evidence of what happened. A soldier shot him “in his lower body at point blank range.”
Other soldiers began beating him on the ground with rifles. They dragged him into an alley face down into an alley, continuing to kick him.
They fired a tear gas canister into the alley’s entrance. About 15 minutes later, they were seen “hoist(ing) him onto a military jeep that drives up and he is driven away.”
An IDF spokesperson changed its version of what happened several times, trying to whitewash cold-blooded murder, falsely saying al-Sarahih attacked soldiers with a knife, then saying he tried grabbing their weapons, claiming he was injured during the scuffle – a bald-faced lie.
Another account said he died from tear gas inhalation. Autopsy results said he was shot with live fire in his abdomen, perhaps dying from blood loss.
So-called Israeli medics lied, claiming they saw no signs of a bullet wound.
B’Tselem called what happened “a particularly grave incident…(S)oldiers forcefully kicked a severely wounded man lying on the ground and beat him with their rifles in the head, upper body and groin.”
“Then they dragged him along an alleyway as though he were not a human being and did not offer him crucial medical aid for more than thirty minutes.”
He likely died from a combination of live fire, severe beating while wounded, loss of blood, and failure to provide medical aid until it was too late to save him.
B’Tselem: “In light of this unacceptable conduct, the attempts made by the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit to justify the incident with one excuse or another are equally disturbing – as is the resounding silence of military and civilian officials.”
“The absence of a firm, unequivocal statement by the military that such conduct will not be tolerated effectively condones the soldiers’ actions, allowing such incidents to recur in the future.”
“The announcement that a Military Police investigation has been launched, as reported by the media, is meant merely to create the illusion that the military is treating the incident with all seriousness.”
“Based on years of experience, the investigation is unlikely to result in any indictment of the persons responsible for the killing and ill-treatment of a-Saradih – certainly not among the higher ranks.”
Israeli government and military personnel remain unaccountable for decades of crimes of war, against humanity, slow-motion genocide and other egregious human rights abuses – Palestinians brutalized with impunity.
The world community pretends not to notice.
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