Dear friend,
This week we published a report I wrote about the use made by Israel's security forces of crowd control weapons in the occupied territories. The report, based on field observations and video documentation of hundreds of demonstrations, stone-throwing incidents and confrontations in the territories over the last five years, presents for the first time a detailed account of the measures available to the Israeli military and police in the territories and of the instructions governing their use. Instructions that are intended to ensure that they do not lead to loss of life and damage to property. The sad conclusion arising from our research is that these instructions are violated almost routinely, leading to numerous Palestinian injuries and sometimes even deaths.
I have witnessed members of the security forces repeatedly violating the military's own orders concerning the use of firearms to disperse demonstrations. Soldiers firing rubber coated metal bullets from a shorter range than is permitted, Border Police officers firing tear-gas canisters directly at people. Does the military intend to change these practices? It is doubtful. The military's response to our findings suggests that it does not acknowledge the severity of the problem. We, in any event, will continue to sound a warning and to document.
Sarit Michaeli, B'Tselem's spokesperson | | | A new B’Tselem report reveals the full inventory of crowd control weapons used by Israeli security forces in the West Bank. These weapons are meant to be non-lethal, enabling authorities to enforce the law without endangering human life. In fact, however, some of these weapons are dangerous and may be lethal if used improperly. Crowd control weapons have killed and injured demonstrators and people throwing stones. | | READ MORE >> | | |  In January 2013, Israeli soldiers fatally shot four Palestinians in the West Bank and at least one in the Gaza Strip. According to B’Tselem’s preliminary inquiries into the five cases in which the Israeli military has accepted responsibility for the firing, the people killed were unarmed and posed no danger to the soldiers. B’Tselem is monitoring the MPIU investigations and would emphasize that, in addition to investigating the circumstances of each incident, the investigators must also examine the written and oral directives conveyed to the soldiers involved. | | READ MORE >> | | |  A B’Tselem investigation indicates that on Monday, 19 November 2012, students from the Tuqu’ boys’ high school were protesting the Pillar of Defense campaign in the Gaza Strip. The school is located near Route 356, which links Bethlehem and Hebron, and some of the students were throwing stones at the road. Consequently, an Israeli military force arrived on the scene. In a video filmed by a Ma’an News Agency photographer, one of the soldiers is seen firing live ammunition at the students, even though none of the soldiers was in danger. A bullet hit one student in the abdomen. B’Tselem contacted the Military Advocate General Corps, demanding an investigation of the incident. | | READ MORE >> | | |  On 30 Dec. 2012, the Office of the Jerusalem District Attorney filed an indictment against a resident of the Nokdim settlement, charging him with the aggravated assault of 13-year-old Haitham Abu Mfareh. The incident occurred in 2007, when Palestinian children were throwing stones at Israeli vehicles travelling on Route 356. One of the cars stopped, the driver got out, chased the children and fired at them, injuring Abu Mfraeh in his head. It is extremely rare for a police investigation of settler-perpetrated violence against a Palestinian to lead to an indictment. | | READ MORE >> | |
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