Israeli Army Medic Called a Hero for Executing Wounded Unarmed Palestinian
Israeli Army Medic Called a Hero for Executing Wounded Unarmed Palestinian
After an IDF medic shot and killed a wounded and unarmed Palestinian man who was lying on the ground, Prime Minister Netanyahu declared that it is “outrageous and unacceptable” to criticize Israeli forces.
Last Thursday, the world responded in horror to a video of an Israeli Defense Force medic executing a wounded and disarmed Palestinian man. Israel’s far-right coalition celebrated the incident as symbolic of their aggressive settlement expansion the region.
The sentiment of the Israeli right wing appears to be shared by the general public. A poll conducted for Israel’s Channel 2 News found that 57 percent of the public said no arrest or investigation into the medic’s actions was called for, with only 32 percent of those polled calling for his arrest.
Israel’s apparent disconnect with the rest of the world stretches further than public opinion polls. Over the last several days, rallies have been held in support of the IDF medic, referring to him as a national hero, along with online petitions demanding that the killer be given a medal for his action.
Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon, however, does not agree with this assessment. Deriding the far-right for creating a “brutal army that has lost its moral backbone” he said that the medic was “not a hero” but rather somebody who criminally violated the international rules of engagement.
The killer’s attorney claims that his client was justified in shooting the man because he thought the unarmed Palestinian “might have a bomb.”
Moral outrage against the executioner continues to mount. Subsequent videos have shown the medic shaking hands with an ultraconservative Kahanist leader following the shooting.
Witnesses have also claimed that the medic told other soldiers who witnessed the shooting that the man “deserved to die.”
Video evidence shows that the unarmed Palestinian had been lying on the street, wounded, for 11 minutes. It was only when the injured man lifted his head that the medic shot and killed him.
Read more: http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160329/1037168278/israel-idf-palestinian-unarmed-executed.html
