{"id":197206,"date":"2019-11-01T08:05:29","date_gmt":"2019-11-01T08:05:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/?p=197206"},"modified":"2019-11-04T07:59:58","modified_gmt":"2019-11-04T07:59:58","slug":"israeli-sniper-gets-community-service-over-killing-of-gaza-boy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/?p=197206","title":{"rendered":"Israeli sniper gets community service over killing of Gaza boy"},"content":{"rendered":"<h1 style=\"text-align: center;\">Maureen Clare-Murphy \u2013 The Electronic Intifada Oct 30, 2019<\/h1>\n<div id=\"attachment_197208\" style=\"width: 550px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/IDF-sniper-protest.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-197208\" class=\"wp-image-197208\" src=\"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/IDF-sniper-protest.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"540\" height=\"360\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/IDF-sniper-protest.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/IDF-sniper-protest-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/IDF-sniper-protest-768x512.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 540px) 100vw, 540px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-197208\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Palestinians protest against Israel\u2019s use of snipers to target demonstrators\u00a0east of Gaza City, 13 July 2018. Dawoud Abo Alkas APA images. Click to enlarge<\/p><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">An Israeli soldier has been <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong><a style=\"color: #ccffff; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.timesofisrael.com\/in-first-soldier-convicted-over-killing-of-gaza-rioter-gets-1-month-sentence\/\">sentenced<\/a><\/strong><\/span> to a month of the military\u2019s equivalent of community service and his rank downgraded for firing his weapon toward an unarmed boy during protests in Gaza last year.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">The child, Uthman Rami Hillis, 14, died after he was hit in the chest with a live bullet that exited through his back east of Gaza City on 13 July 2018.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">Video documenting the fatal shooting shows Hillis climbing a fence along the Gaza-Israel boundary before he falls and other protesters rush to his aid:<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Israeli forces shot dead 14-year-old Othman Hilles today in Gaza. Video shows he posed no direct or mortal threat at the time he was killed. A live bullet struck him in the chest and exited through his back. <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/GazaReturnMarch?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#GazaReturnMarch<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/MH62g4b1HM\">pic.twitter.com\/MH62g4b1HM<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Defense for Children (@DCIPalestine) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/DCIPalestine\/status\/1017882226275434497?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">July 13, 2018<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">Another Palestinian, 20-year-old Muhammad Nasir Shurab, was <a style=\"color: #ccffff;\" href=\"https:\/\/electronicintifada.net\/blogs\/ali-abunimah\/israel-kills-child-gaza-marks-100-days-protests\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong>also fatally wounded<\/strong><\/span><\/a> during protests in southern Gaza that day.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">The video shows that Hillis \u201cposed no direct or mortal threat at the time he was killed,\u201d Defense for Children International Palestine <a style=\"color: #ccffff;\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/DCIPalestine\/status\/1017882226275434497\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong>stated<\/strong><\/span><\/a> at the time.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">The soldier\u2019s conviction is the first over the killing of a Palestinian during the ongoing Great March of Return protests launched on 30 March 2018.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">The unnamed soldier was convicted of \u201cdisobeying an order leading to a threat to life or health\u201d as part of a plea bargain reached on Monday, <em>The New York Times<\/em> <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong><a style=\"color: #ccffff; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/10\/30\/world\/middleeast\/othman-helles-killing-israel-soldier.html\">reported<\/a><\/strong><\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">The Israeli military has not admitted to killing Hillis, claiming that \u201cno proof has been provided that the soldier\u2019s action actually caused\u201d the child\u2019s death, <a style=\"color: #ccffff;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.haaretz.com\/israel-news\/.premium-israeli-soldier-gets-month-s-community-service-after-death-of-palestinian-teenager-1.8057024\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong>according to<\/strong><\/span><\/a> the Israeli daily <em>Haaretz<\/em>.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\">Unlawful killings<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">Hillis is among 46 children killed by Israeli occupation forces during the Great March of Return protests. More than 200 Palestinians have lost their lives during the demonstrations.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">Only 13 of those killings have been investigated by Israel\u2019s military police.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">\u201cBut these investigations focus only on forces on the ground, not on decision makers who dictated an illegal and shameful open fire policy,\u201d Sarit Michaeli, international advocacy officer for the Israeli human rights group B\u2019Tselem, <a style=\"color: #ccffff;\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/saritm0\/status\/1189434888149262337\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong>stated<\/strong><\/span><\/a> on Twitter.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">Israeli military officials have <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong><a style=\"color: #ccffff; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.btselem.org\/press_releases\/20190724_military_admits_to_killing_protestors_for_no_reason\">admitted<\/a><\/strong><\/span> that Palestinian protesters in Gaza have been killed without justification.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">An independent UN investigation of Israel\u2019s use of force against the Great March of Return <a style=\"color: #ccffff;\" href=\"https:\/\/electronicintifada.net\/blogs\/maureen-clare-murphy\/shoot-protesters-while-they-rest-israels-new-rules\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong>found<\/strong><\/span><\/a> \u201cthe use of live ammunition by Israeli security forces against demonstrators was unlawful.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">The commission\u2019s report published earlier this year calls on Israel to immediately lift its blockade on Gaza \u2013 one of the key demands of the Great March of Return \u2013 and to investigate \u201cevery protest-related killing and injury, promptly, impartially and independently.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">B\u2019Tselem has long <a style=\"color: #ccffff;\" href=\"https:\/\/electronicintifada.net\/blogs\/charlotte-silver\/we-will-no-longer-be-fig-leaf-occupation-says-btselem\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong>described<\/strong><\/span><\/a> the Israeli military\u2019s internal probes as a \u201cfig leaf\u201d mechanism that serves to whitewash the occupation.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">The group <a style=\"color: #ccffff;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.btselem.org\/press_releases\/20191028_mag_corps_closes_3_more_cases_of_palestinian_fatalities\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong>stated this week<\/strong><\/span><\/a> that the military law enforcement system is \u201cprimarily aimed at defending the perpetrators, while creating the illusion of a functioning system so as to deflect criticism.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">B\u2019Tselem pointed to the recent closing of three case files concerning Palestinians killed by Israeli soldiers in the West Bank in early 2018. The rights group\u2019s investigation of those cases \u201cfound that all three killings were unjustified.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">Ali Omar Nimer Qinu, 17, was<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong> <a style=\"color: #ccffff; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/electronicintifada.net\/blogs\/maureen-clare-murphy\/israel-has-already-killed-three-palestinian-children-2018\">shot with a live bullet in the head<\/a><\/strong><\/span> during confrontations between Palestinians and soldiers near Nablus in the northern West Bank on 11 January that year.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">Witnesses told Defense for Children International Palestine that \u201cSoldiers were positioned on a side road near the village entrance when they fired shots from inside a military jeep at several youths standing on a hill.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">\u201cProtesters fled the area and returned shortly after to find Ali on the ground bleeding from his head, a witness told [Defense for Children International Palestine]. He was taken to the hospital where he was pronounced dead on arrival.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">Following the Israeli military\u2019s internal probe into Qinu\u2019s killing, B\u2019Tselem stated that according to the army\u2019s open-fire orders, \u201cshooting to kill is permitted only when the lives of security forces or other persons are in danger.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">\u201cEven then, it is allowed only when there are no other means of averting the danger. This killing was a far cry from meeting these criteria,\u201d B\u2019Tselem added.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\">\u201cExpressly prohibited\u201d<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">The military also closed its investigation into the <a style=\"color: #ccffff;\" href=\"https:\/\/electronicintifada.net\/blogs\/ali-abunimah\/fourth-palestinian-child-year-killed-israel\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong>killing of Laith Abu Naim<\/strong><\/span><\/a>, 16, who B\u2019Tselem says was shot in the head with a rubber-coated metal bullet from a distance of 20 meters on 30 January 2018. The teen was shot while returning to al-Mughayir village after participating in confrontations with soldiers.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">\u201cThe soldiers left the scene without providing him any medical assistance,\u201d according to B\u2019Tselem, which said the close-range firing of a rubber-coated metal bullet at the upper body \u201ccould be lethal and is therefore expressly prohibited by the open-fire regulations.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">The Israeli military also closed the file of <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong><a style=\"color: #ccffff; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/electronicintifada.net\/blogs\/maureen-clare-murphy\/palestinian-killed-jericho-was-shot-stomach\">Yasin Omar al-Saradih<\/a><\/strong><\/span>, who was shot in the stomach by soldiers as he ran at them while carrying an iron bar during an army raid in the West Bank city of Jericho on 22 February 2018.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">Security camera footage shows the shooting of al-Saradih and soldiers kicking the injured man and beating him with their rifles. Al-Saradih was left dead or dying on the ground for at least 10 minutes, according to Al-Haq, a Palestinian human rights group that investigated his death.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">Amnesty International<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong> <a style=\"color: #ccffff; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/electronicintifada.net\/blogs\/maureen-clare-murphy\/year-atrocities-palestine\">has stated<\/a><\/strong><\/span> that failure to provide medical aid\u2013\u2013 especially intentional failure \u2013 \u201cviolates the prohibition on torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment\u201d and as such \u201cshould be investigated as a criminal offense.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">Al-Haq said at the time that al-Saradih\u2019s slaying may amount to a war crime, \u201cgiving rise to individual criminal responsibility at the International Criminal Court.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">The situation in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip has been under preliminary examination by that court since 2015. Its chief prosecutor issued an <a style=\"color: #ccffff;\" href=\"https:\/\/electronicintifada.net\/blogs\/ali-abunimah\/icc-warns-israeli-leaders-over-gaza-killings\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong>unprecedented warning<\/strong><\/span><\/a> to Israeli leaders last year that they may face trial for the killings of unarmed protesters in Gaza.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">In March this year, the UN Human Rights Council <a style=\"color: #ccffff;\" href=\"https:\/\/electronicintifada.net\/blogs\/maureen-clare-murphy\/israel-kills-gaza-protesters-un-body-condemns-unlawful-force\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong>passed a resolution<\/strong><\/span><\/a> noting the lack of meaningful Israeli investigations into human rights abuses by its forces.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">The resolution states that \u201cnumerous legal, procedural and practical obstacles in the Israeli civil and criminal legal system [contribute] to the denial of access to justice for Palestinian victims and of their right to an effective judicial remedy.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/electronicintifada.net\/blogs\/maureen-clare-murphy\/israeli-sniper-gets-community-service-over-killing-gaza-boy\">Source<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A sniper from the \u201cmost moral army in the world\u201d is sentenced to a month community service for murdering a 14-year-old boy<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":39262,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[58,37],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-197206","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-Current_Affairs","category-Israel_Anti-Semitism_Zionism_and_US-UK_allies"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/197206","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/39262"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=197206"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/197206\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":197237,"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/197206\/revisions\/197237"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=197206"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=197206"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=197206"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}