The incident took place in the West Bank village of Nabi Saleh; Video
appears to indicate that officer´s life was not in danger.
An IDF officer was documented ten days ago hurling rocks and firing
live ammunition at Palestinian demonstrators near the West Bank
village of Nabi Saleh. In the video, shot by village resident Bilel
Tamimi, the officer is seen throwing rocks at two young Palestinian
men who are also hurling rocks at him. Later the officer is seen
firing in their direction.
The IDF Spokesperson’s Unit released a statement, stating that "an
initial investigation found that live ammunition was used in the
incident. The firing officer has been suspended until the
investigation is completed."
The video, uploaded to Youtube, clearly shows clouds of dust rising
from the area where the bullets struck, near the Palestinian men. The
officer, who was at the scene with four other IDF soldiers, is seen
advancing and retreating, suggesting his life was not in danger.
According to standing orders, the use of crowd control equipment must
be authorized by a company commander, and use of live ammunition can
only be used after carrying out protocols for apprehending suspicious
suspects.
The villages´ Popular Committee said in a statement that the violence
by IDF soldiers reflects Israel´s policies and is not limited to a
few isolated incidents.
Last December, Nabi Saleh resident Mustafa Tamimi, 28, was killed in
a similar incident during a weekly demonstration. In February, the
IDF admitted that injuries sustained by a French woman may have been
caused by an army tear gas canister and not by rocks thrown by other
protesters, as initially claimed.
Both incidents took place during the weekly demonstration by
residents of Nabi Saleh against the expropriation of their land in
favor of the nearby settlement of Halamish, and the settlers´
takeover of a spring that served the Palestinian residents.
