Field Update

On Tuesday, 20 August 2013, a colonel who
serves as director of the office of the Palestinian presidency’s secretary
general broke into a house in Ramallah and fired inside it allegedly because
his child was attacked by another child living in the house.  As a result of the indiscriminate shooting,
the colonel’s child, who was accompanying him, was injured by a bullet to the
foot.  This attack constitutes a form of
misuse of weapons, a phenomenon which prevails in the occupied Palestinian
territory (oPt). 

According to investigations conducted by the
Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR), and the testimony of the affected
house’s owner, Ms. Hanan Du’ais Abu Kwaik, 44, at approximately 03:00 on
Tuesday, 20 August 2013, Colonel Sa’id Ahmed, director of the office Tayeb
Abdul al-Rahim, secretary general of the Palestinian presidency, his bodyguard
and his child stormed Abu Kwaik’s house in al-Hayat housing community in Baten
al-Hawa neighborhood in Ramallah.  The
colonel and his bodyguard were armed. 
Colonel Ahmed searched for Abu Kwaik’s child, 13-year-old Bahaa’, and when
he found him, he attempted to force him out of the house claiming that Bahaa’
had attacked the colonel’s child, but Bahaa’ was able to escape.  Immediately, the colonel opened fire
indiscriminately.  As a result, the
colonel’s child was injured by a bullet to the foot, and the house was
damaged. 

PCHR condemns this attack, which constitutes a
form of misuse of weapons, a phenomenon which prevails in the oPt.  PCHR calls upon the Attorney General’s office
to investigate it and bring the perpetrators before justice.