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IDF: Private security guards killed knife-wielding Palestinian siblings
Source: Times of Israel
Military Police drops probe into fatal shooting at Qalandiya last week, says officer acted appropriately; Israel Police reportedly won’t look into it either
e Palestinian siblings shot dead during an attempted attack on Israeli border guards at the Qalandiya crossing in the West Bank last week were killed by civilian security guards and not Israeli forces, an army investigation determined.
Since security forces did not fire the fatal shots at Maram Hassan Abu Ismail, 23, and her brother Ibrahim Saleh Taha, 16, the Military Police’s investigations unit on Sunday announced the defense establishment would drop its investigations into the incident. Abu Ismail had hurled a knife at Israeli forces before she was shot, according to the Israeli military.
According to initial reports, the April 27 incident was to be probed by investigators from the Jerusalem District Police. However, later Sunday, according to Army Radio, the police said it would not be probing the incident either, since the shots that killed Abu Ismail and Taha were fired moments by a guard from a privately contracted security firm.
The Military Police said the Border Police officer guarding the busy West Bank crossing at the time complied with army protocol and arrest procedures by firing warning shots into the air as the siblings approached guards at the checkpoint in a suspicious manner. The private guard fired seconds later.
e Palestinian siblings shot dead during an attempted attack on Israeli border guards at the Qalandiya crossing in the West Bank last week were killed by civilian security guards and not Israeli forces, an army investigation determined.
Since security forces did not fire the fatal shots at Maram Hassan Abu Ismail, 23, and her brother Ibrahim Saleh Taha, 16, the Military Police’s investigations unit on Sunday announced the defense establishment would drop its investigations into the incident. Abu Ismail had hurled a knife at Israeli forces before she was shot, according to the Israeli military.
According to initial reports, the April 27 incident was to be probed by investigators from the Jerusalem District Police. However, later Sunday, according to Army Radio, the police said it would not be probing the incident either, since the shots that killed Abu Ismail and Taha were fired moments by a guard from a privately contracted security firm.
The Military Police said the Border Police officer guarding the busy West Bank crossing at the time complied with army protocol and arrest procedures by firing warning shots into the air as the siblings approached guards at the checkpoint in a suspicious manner. The private guard fired seconds later.
Read more: http://www.timesofisrael.com/idf-private-security-guards-killed-knife-wielding-palestinian-siblings/
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Release the Qalandiyah Video
Source: Haaretz Editorial
The refusal of police to release footage of the incident only increases fear that a crime was committed when two Palestinians were shot by security guards.
What happened at the Qalandiyah checkpoint last Wednesday can’t stay in Qalandiyah. The killing of Maram Abu Ismail, a 23-year-old mother of two small children, and her brother Ibrahim Taha, 16, who, according to the Justice Ministry department for the investigation of police officers, were shot by security guards at the checkpoint, raises questions and serious suspicions.
The refusal of the police to release video footage from the security cameras at the scene – which they should have done immediately to remove any doubts – only increases the fear that a crime was committed at the north Jerusalem checkpoint.
The police claim – that the video is needed for the investigation and cannot be released – contradicts their behavior in similar instances in the past, when police spokesmen hastened to release security camera footage when it served police purposes. The public has the right to know why and how the siblings were killed, and if it was indeed an unavoidable killing of assailants who threatened the lives of policemen and security guards at the checkpoint.
The two Palestinians approached the Qalandiyah checkpoint on foot, in the lane designated for vehicles. The two raised the suspicion of policemen, who called on them to stop. According to police, at a certain point Abu Ismail took a knife out of her bag and thrust it toward the policemen. According to the Justice Ministry department, a policeman standing at the checkpoint then followed arrest procedures by firing in the air, but the shots that killed the siblings were fired by security guards standing nearby. The police argue that two more knives were found on the siblings’ bodies.
What happened at the Qalandiyah checkpoint last Wednesday can’t stay in Qalandiyah. The killing of Maram Abu Ismail, a 23-year-old mother of two small children, and her brother Ibrahim Taha, 16, who, according to the Justice Ministry department for the investigation of police officers, were shot by security guards at the checkpoint, raises questions and serious suspicions.
The refusal of the police to release video footage from the security cameras at the scene – which they should have done immediately to remove any doubts – only increases the fear that a crime was committed at the north Jerusalem checkpoint.
The police claim – that the video is needed for the investigation and cannot be released – contradicts their behavior in similar instances in the past, when police spokesmen hastened to release security camera footage when it served police purposes. The public has the right to know why and how the siblings were killed, and if it was indeed an unavoidable killing of assailants who threatened the lives of policemen and security guards at the checkpoint.
The two Palestinians approached the Qalandiyah checkpoint on foot, in the lane designated for vehicles. The two raised the suspicion of policemen, who called on them to stop. According to police, at a certain point Abu Ismail took a knife out of her bag and thrust it toward the policemen. According to the Justice Ministry department, a policeman standing at the checkpoint then followed arrest procedures by firing in the air, but the shots that killed the siblings were fired by security guards standing nearby. The police argue that two more knives were found on the siblings’ bodies.
Read more: http://www.haaretz.com/opinion/1.717307