IOF Use Excessive Lethal Force and Kill Palestinian Civilian in al-Nabi Saleh Weekly Peaceful Protests
Ref:
134/2011
The
Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) strongly condemns the crime of
killing a Palestinian who was peacefully demonstrating in al-Nabi Saleh
village, northwest of Ramallah, by the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF). PCHR notes that IOF have intentionally used
excessive lethal force against weekly peaceful protests organized by
Palestinian civilians and Israeli and international human rights defenders
against the construction of the annexation wall in the West Bank. PCHR calls upon the international community to
take immediate action in order to put an end to IOF’s crimes. PCHR calls also upon the High Contracting
Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention to fulfill their obligations under
Article 1 of the Convention which requires the Contracting Parties to respect
and ensure respect for the Convention under all circumstances.
According
to investigations conducted by PCHR, following the Friday prayer on 09 December
2011, dozens of Palestinian civilians and Israeli and international human rights defenders
gathered in the center of al-Nabi Saleh village, northwest of Ramallah, to
start the weekly peaceful protest against the construction of the annexation
wall and settlement activities. The
protesters walked towards the gate erected by IOF near the entrance of the
village and leading to Palestinian lands that Israeli settlers from the nearby
"Halamish" settlement are trying to seize. Israeli soldiers who had been extensively
deployed in the area and near all the entrances of the village since the
morning, began to confront the protesters who wanted to walk towards the affected
lands. Israeli soldiers fired
rubber-coated bullets, sound bombs and tear gas canisters at the protesters. A result, Mustafa Abdul Razzaq al-Tamimi, 27,
was hit by a tear gas canister to the right side of his face. Al-Tamimi fell down and he was evacuated in a
Palestinian taxi which drove towards Ramallah. IOF stopped the taxi, took al-Tamimi, and
transferred him to a hospital in Israel. At approximately 10:00 on Saturday, 10
December 2011, medical sources at Israeli hospital pronounced al-Tamimi dead. Al-Tamimi’s body was transferred to Ramallah
Public Hospital at around 19:00 on Saturday, 10 December. Eyewitnesses told a PCHR fieldworker that the
tear gas canister was fired at al-Tamimi from an Israeli military jeep that was
located approximately 10 meters from him.
PCHR
renews its condemnation of this crime and:
1. Stresses that the use of extensive lethal force against peaceful
protests organized by Palestinian civilians has become a systematic policy by
IOF, which reflects disregard for the lives of Palestinian civilians;
2. Holds IOF accountable for the deterioration of the situation in both
the West Bank and the Gaza Strip;
3. Believes that it is time to convene a conference of the High
Contracting Parties to the Geneva Conventions in order to take immediate action
to protect Palestinian civilians in the OPT, in view of the continued
violations of the Fourth Geneva Convention by the State of Israel and IOF.