PCHR
Palestinian Centre for Human Rights
Press Releases
|
Ref: 70/2014
Date: 22 June 2014
Time: 11:00 GMT
Israeli
Forces Use Excessive Lethal Force Killing a Palestinian Civilian
Suffering Mental Problems in ‘Ein Beit al-Maa’ Refugee Camp in Nablus
On Sunday morning, 22 June 2014,
Israeli forces killed a Palestinian civilian from ‘Ein Beit al-Maa’,
northwest of Nablus in the northern West Bank, after firing several
bullets at him from a close range when he was on his way to a mosque
near his house for dawn prayers, because he did not obey their orders to
stop. The family of the victim said to a PCHR fieldworker that their
son suffered mental problems and epilepsy. Thus, the number of
Palestinians killed in the West Bank has increased to four, including a
child and elderly man, since the beginning of the brutal campaign
conducted by the Israeli forces for the 10th consecutive day
on the cities, villages and refugee camps in the West Bank. The Israeli
forces have continued to raid and search houses, destroy the
infra-structure of many villages, and raid universities, the last of
which were the universities of Abu Dis, east of Occupied East Jerusalem,
and Polytechnic Hebron, and confiscated their contents after breaking
their locks and attacking their guards. It should be mentioned that the
Israeli forces called this campaign “Cleaning the Stables.”
According to investigations conducted by the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR), at approximately 03:30
on the aforementioned day, Ahmed Sa’id S’oud Khaled (27) was on his way
from his house in ‘Ein Beit al-Maa’ refugee camp, northwest of Nablus,
to ‘Omer Ben al-Khattab Mosque in al-Sekah Street for the dawn prayer.
Around ten meters away from his house, a group of Israeli soldiers were
raiding and searching houses when an Israeli soldier shouted at Ahmed to
stop. However, he did not obey the orders, so the Israeli soldiers
opened fire at him from a distance of around 30 meters. As a result, he
was killed by 4 bullets to the abdomen, back, right thigh and right
shoulder.
PCHR
strongly condemns this crime, which further proves the use of excessive
force by Israeli forces against the Palestinian civilians in disregard
for the civilians’ lives. Moreover, PCHR stresses that the measures
taken by the Israeli forces in the oPt are part of the collective
punishment policy and reprisals against Palestinian civilians in
violation of Article 33 of the 1949 Fourth Geneva Convention Relative to
Protection of Civilians in Times of War which provides that: “No
protected person may be punished for an offence he or she has not
personally committed. Collective penalties and likewise all measures of
intimidation or of terrorism are prohibited”. Therefore, PCHR calls
upon the international community to take immediate and effective actions
to put an end to such crimes and reiterates its call for the High
Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 to fulfill
their obligations under Article 1; i.e., to respect and to ensure
respect for the Convention in all circumstances, and their obligation
under Article 146 to prosecute persons alleged to commit grave breaches
of the Fourth Geneva Convention. These grave breaches constitute war
crimes under Article 147 of the same Convention and Protocol I
Additional to the Geneva Conventions.
Public Document
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