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VIII. The impunity which Israeli soldiers have when they commit the
killing
Israeli
soldiers who kill Palestinians enjoy a complete impunity whether from the
security forces or from the Israeli courts. This was the situation when
four young men were killed during the recent activities in support of
Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails who were on a hunger strike. An
investigation on their death is still in process
. The soldiers
who committed the act were not detained or interrogated, even though they
all violated the shooting instructions on rubber and live bullets that
appear in the soldiers’ manual.
There are many
examples, which clarify the way in which the Israeli courts play around
with the lives of Palestinians. The impunity which the Israeli soldiers
who had committed the act enjoy, encourages other soldiers in the same
position to commit similar crimes. The Israeli Military Court in Jaffa
sentenced 4 Israeli soldiers to pay a fine of one single Agora (equivalent
to $0.003) after they have been convicted of killing Iyad Mahmoud Awad
Badran (18) on 13 November 1996. They were also charged of not following
the instructions of the IDF with regards to opening fire. The soldiers
were not acting out of self-defense. Iyad, who was driving his car, was
forced to stop because there was a yellow VW blocking his way, and
flashing strong spot lights towards him. The people in the car were
Israeli soldiers under cover. Iyad thought that they were settlers, and
started reversing his car. At this minute, the soldiers opened fire at him
and killed him on the spot.
In the past, the
Jerusalem court ordered that the two families of two Palestinian martyrs
should not get compensated for the loss of their sons who were killed
during a demonstration that took place in September 1996 outside the Aqsa
Mosque. The lives of soldiers were not in danger, but they shot at the
young men anyway.
The judge
determined that “the police were not mistaken.”
There are many
other examples proving the impunity that Israeli soldiers enjoy. The
murders they commit are not just random mistakes, but rather a supreme
state policy that considers killing a Palestinian not a crime for which a
soldier ought to be punished.
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