14 july 2020

The parents of the Palestinian man shot by police
Justice Ministry says internal affairs investigators had checked all cameras in the area after the shooting of 32-year-old Eyad Hallaq in Jerusalem's Old City on May 30, but the incident 'was not documented on them', while some cameras 'were not connected at the relevant time'
The Justice Ministry on Tuesday confirmed there is no footage of the shooting of an autistic Palestinian man who was killed by Israeli police, saying that security cameras in the area were not operating properly at the time.
The admission marked a setback in the investigation and raised suspicions from the man's family about the integrity of the probe.
Eyad Hallaq, who was 32, was fatally shot just inside Jerusalem's Old City on May 30 as he was on his way to the special-needs institution that he attended.
The Old City frequently experiences heightened tensions between local Palestinians and Israeli security forces, and the volatile area's narrow streets are lined with hundreds of security cameras.
In a statement, the Justice Ministry said internal affairs investigators had checked all of the cameras in the area after the shooting. "At this stage of the investigation we can relay that the shooting incident was not documented on them," it said.
"Also in the garbage room where the deadly shooting took place, there were security cameras but those cameras were not connected at the relevant time and didn't document the shooting."
According to various accounts at the time, two members of Israel's paramilitary Border Police force chased Hallaq into a nook and shot him as he cowered next to a garbage bin. At the time, Israeli police said they believed he was carrying a "suspicious object" and said they opened fire when he failed to heed calls to stop.
His teacher, who was with him, told an Israeli TV station that she had repeatedly called out to police that he was "disabled."
The ministry said Hallaq, who was unarmed, had been mistakenly identified as an attacker and called the incident "tragic." It said that despite the lack of footage, investigators had interviewed a number of witnesses, in addition to the officers involved in the incident. It said the investigation was in its final stages.
"Representatives of the internal investigations department expressed their condolences to the family and requested to shake the hands of the parents," the ministry said.
The statement confirmed an announcement by Hallaq's family on Monday that police informed them there was no footage of the shooting.
The family's lawyer, Jad Qadamani, said the claim that there was no footage was unacceptable. "We look with great suspicion on this matter and demand the immediate opening of an investigation," he said.
At the time, the shooting drew comparisons to the death of George Floyd in the U.S. and prompted a series of small demonstrations against police violence. The uproar crossed Israeli-Palestinian lines and drew Jewish protesters as well, and Israeli leaders expressed regret over the shooting.
But since then, the family has complained about the slow pace of the investigation.
Justice Ministry says internal affairs investigators had checked all cameras in the area after the shooting of 32-year-old Eyad Hallaq in Jerusalem's Old City on May 30, but the incident 'was not documented on them', while some cameras 'were not connected at the relevant time'
The Justice Ministry on Tuesday confirmed there is no footage of the shooting of an autistic Palestinian man who was killed by Israeli police, saying that security cameras in the area were not operating properly at the time.
The admission marked a setback in the investigation and raised suspicions from the man's family about the integrity of the probe.
Eyad Hallaq, who was 32, was fatally shot just inside Jerusalem's Old City on May 30 as he was on his way to the special-needs institution that he attended.
The Old City frequently experiences heightened tensions between local Palestinians and Israeli security forces, and the volatile area's narrow streets are lined with hundreds of security cameras.
In a statement, the Justice Ministry said internal affairs investigators had checked all of the cameras in the area after the shooting. "At this stage of the investigation we can relay that the shooting incident was not documented on them," it said.
"Also in the garbage room where the deadly shooting took place, there were security cameras but those cameras were not connected at the relevant time and didn't document the shooting."
According to various accounts at the time, two members of Israel's paramilitary Border Police force chased Hallaq into a nook and shot him as he cowered next to a garbage bin. At the time, Israeli police said they believed he was carrying a "suspicious object" and said they opened fire when he failed to heed calls to stop.
His teacher, who was with him, told an Israeli TV station that she had repeatedly called out to police that he was "disabled."
The ministry said Hallaq, who was unarmed, had been mistakenly identified as an attacker and called the incident "tragic." It said that despite the lack of footage, investigators had interviewed a number of witnesses, in addition to the officers involved in the incident. It said the investigation was in its final stages.
"Representatives of the internal investigations department expressed their condolences to the family and requested to shake the hands of the parents," the ministry said.
The statement confirmed an announcement by Hallaq's family on Monday that police informed them there was no footage of the shooting.
The family's lawyer, Jad Qadamani, said the claim that there was no footage was unacceptable. "We look with great suspicion on this matter and demand the immediate opening of an investigation," he said.
At the time, the shooting drew comparisons to the death of George Floyd in the U.S. and prompted a series of small demonstrations against police violence. The uproar crossed Israeli-Palestinian lines and drew Jewish protesters as well, and Israeli leaders expressed regret over the shooting.
But since then, the family has complained about the slow pace of the investigation.
2 july 2020

After a month of pressure by family, officials confirm in a court hearing that investigators are studying security-camera footage of the shooting, says family lawyer
The family of a Palestinian man with autism who was fatally shot by police said on Thursday that it took a month for authorities to confirm the existence of security-camera footage of the shooting, raising concerns that no action will be taken against those involved.
The existence of the footage had been in question throughout an investigation that the family says has been painfully slow.
“The police say the investigation is ongoing. Though it is late, we hope that it will end by delivering justice,” said Khiri Hallaq, the man’s father.
His son, Eyad, was fatally shot on May 30 just inside Jerusalem’s Old City as he was making his daily walk to the special-needs school he attended.
At the time, police said they believed the 32-year-old was carrying a “suspicious object” and said they opened fire when he failed to heed calls to stop.
According to various accounts, two Border Police officers chased Hallaq into a nook and shot him as he cowered next to a garbage bin.
Hallaq’s teacher, who was with him, told an Israeli TV station that Hallaq, who had difficulties speaking, fell to the ground after being shot, then ran for cover next to the garbage container.
She said she repeatedly cried out to police that he was “disabled” and tried in vain to stop the shooting. At least five bullet holes were seen in a wall of a small structure at the site.
At the time, the shooting drew comparisons to the death of George Floyd in the U.S. and prompted a series of small demonstrations against police violence. The uproar crossed Israeli-Palestinian lines and drew Jewish protesters as well.
Defense Minister Benny Gantz said Israel was “very sorry,” while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the incident a “tragedy” and promised a thorough investigation.
Since then, however, the family has heard little while the two officers involved in the shooting have reportedly been released from house arrest.
On Wednesday, after a month of pressure by the family, officials confirmed in a court hearing that investigators are studying security-camera footage of the shooting, said the family’s lawyer.
Haaretz daily newspaper had reported earlier this week that there may not be any footage, even though the streets and alleyways of the volatile Old City are lined with hundreds of security cameras.
The lawyer, Jad Qadamani, said the family has not been permitted to see any of the videos because they are evidence in an ongoing investigation.
Nonetheless, he said they are “calm because we know the videos are there.” He called the footage “an important tool” in the investigation.
Qadamani said the family was frustrated that it had required so much effort for authorities to acknowledge the existence of the videos and that the investigation has dragged on for so long.
“Maybe there is a need to investigate, but not to this extent,” he said.
Cases involving police violence are referred to the Department for Internal Investigations under the Justice Ministry. The ministry said the case remains under investigation and declined further comment. Israel Police referred questions to the ministry.
According to the Association for Civil Rights in Israel, cases referred to the department rarely end with disciplinary action.
It said that over 80% of more than 5,400 cases sent to the department from 2015 to 2018 were not investigated at all, and no more than 3% of complaints resulted in indictments. About 20 cases each year result in disciplinary proceedings for the use of force, and most of those end up with little more than a reprimand or reduction in rank.
It said the figures were based on official data obtained through a freedom of information request.
The statistics “speak for themselves,” ACRI said. “With an overwhelming majority of complaints against police violence never investigated and a complete lack of accountability on behalf of authorities, the cycle of the abhorrent use of police force will never cease.”
It said the police profiling of minorities is also a “severe problem.”
Qadamani, the family lawyer, said it has been difficult for them to trust the system but they remained hopeful.
“The feeling is very problematic. I expect and very much want to believe that they will take the real and correct steps for justice for Eyad,” he said.
The family of a Palestinian man with autism who was fatally shot by police said on Thursday that it took a month for authorities to confirm the existence of security-camera footage of the shooting, raising concerns that no action will be taken against those involved.
The existence of the footage had been in question throughout an investigation that the family says has been painfully slow.
“The police say the investigation is ongoing. Though it is late, we hope that it will end by delivering justice,” said Khiri Hallaq, the man’s father.
His son, Eyad, was fatally shot on May 30 just inside Jerusalem’s Old City as he was making his daily walk to the special-needs school he attended.
At the time, police said they believed the 32-year-old was carrying a “suspicious object” and said they opened fire when he failed to heed calls to stop.
According to various accounts, two Border Police officers chased Hallaq into a nook and shot him as he cowered next to a garbage bin.
Hallaq’s teacher, who was with him, told an Israeli TV station that Hallaq, who had difficulties speaking, fell to the ground after being shot, then ran for cover next to the garbage container.
She said she repeatedly cried out to police that he was “disabled” and tried in vain to stop the shooting. At least five bullet holes were seen in a wall of a small structure at the site.
At the time, the shooting drew comparisons to the death of George Floyd in the U.S. and prompted a series of small demonstrations against police violence. The uproar crossed Israeli-Palestinian lines and drew Jewish protesters as well.
Defense Minister Benny Gantz said Israel was “very sorry,” while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the incident a “tragedy” and promised a thorough investigation.
Since then, however, the family has heard little while the two officers involved in the shooting have reportedly been released from house arrest.
On Wednesday, after a month of pressure by the family, officials confirmed in a court hearing that investigators are studying security-camera footage of the shooting, said the family’s lawyer.
Haaretz daily newspaper had reported earlier this week that there may not be any footage, even though the streets and alleyways of the volatile Old City are lined with hundreds of security cameras.
The lawyer, Jad Qadamani, said the family has not been permitted to see any of the videos because they are evidence in an ongoing investigation.
Nonetheless, he said they are “calm because we know the videos are there.” He called the footage “an important tool” in the investigation.
Qadamani said the family was frustrated that it had required so much effort for authorities to acknowledge the existence of the videos and that the investigation has dragged on for so long.
“Maybe there is a need to investigate, but not to this extent,” he said.
Cases involving police violence are referred to the Department for Internal Investigations under the Justice Ministry. The ministry said the case remains under investigation and declined further comment. Israel Police referred questions to the ministry.
According to the Association for Civil Rights in Israel, cases referred to the department rarely end with disciplinary action.
It said that over 80% of more than 5,400 cases sent to the department from 2015 to 2018 were not investigated at all, and no more than 3% of complaints resulted in indictments. About 20 cases each year result in disciplinary proceedings for the use of force, and most of those end up with little more than a reprimand or reduction in rank.
It said the figures were based on official data obtained through a freedom of information request.
The statistics “speak for themselves,” ACRI said. “With an overwhelming majority of complaints against police violence never investigated and a complete lack of accountability on behalf of authorities, the cycle of the abhorrent use of police force will never cease.”
It said the police profiling of minorities is also a “severe problem.”
Qadamani, the family lawyer, said it has been difficult for them to trust the system but they remained hopeful.
“The feeling is very problematic. I expect and very much want to believe that they will take the real and correct steps for justice for Eyad,” he said.
27 june 2020

Executive Committee for the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), on Saturday, condemned what it termed immoral Israeli withholding slain bodies of Palestinians, killed by Israel, the latest of which was the body of Ahmad Erekat, who was shot dead by Israeli troops, at a checkpoint near the West Bank southern city of Bethlehem.
In a statement, the PLO’s Executive Committee called on all relevant international organizations to pressure the Israeli government to release those corpses, from what the PLO described as the ‘Numbers Graveyard’.
The statement maintained that the latest cases of slain Palestinians placed in this graveyard, were those of Eyad Al Halaq, 32, a disabled Palestinian young man killed by Israeli troops in East Jerusalem and Ahmad Erekat, 26, was shot dead by Israeli soldiers, while he was en-route to a hairdressing salon to pick up family members, shortly before a family wedding.
It noted that the Palestinian people and all other free nations, worldwide, are waiting for the moment of justice, when Israeli officials stand trial for all the crimes that they have committed against the Palestinian people.
The Committee, which the signed peace accords with Israel in 1993, and then recognized Israel’s right to exist, stressing the point that the Palestinian people must be protected from all Israeli practices and crimes, as a people under Israeli occupation.
In its press release, issued this weekend, the PLO’s Executive Committee, called on the international community to facilitate the return of Palestinian refugees to their Palestinian homeland and curb all, what the committee termed ‘conspiracies’ that are aimed at liquidating the Palestinian cause, once and for all.
The press release referred to the US-envisioned peace plan, the so-called ‘deal of the century’, which Palestinians rejected for they believe it would only allow a dismembered Palestinian state, without the occupied East Jerusalem as its capital.
The PLO reiterated its long-held position that the Palestinian sacrifices along the path towards freedom and statehood, will not go unrewarded and that Palestinian resistance will continue unabated, until the Israeli occupation is removed and Palestinian legitimate rights are attained.
Noteworthy, over the past several decades of conflict, Israeli occupation authorities, have held dozens of corpses of Palestinians, whom Israel killed throughout course of the occupation.
Palestinian statistical figures suggest that Israel continues to withhold 260 Palestinian corpses.
In a statement, the PLO’s Executive Committee called on all relevant international organizations to pressure the Israeli government to release those corpses, from what the PLO described as the ‘Numbers Graveyard’.
The statement maintained that the latest cases of slain Palestinians placed in this graveyard, were those of Eyad Al Halaq, 32, a disabled Palestinian young man killed by Israeli troops in East Jerusalem and Ahmad Erekat, 26, was shot dead by Israeli soldiers, while he was en-route to a hairdressing salon to pick up family members, shortly before a family wedding.
It noted that the Palestinian people and all other free nations, worldwide, are waiting for the moment of justice, when Israeli officials stand trial for all the crimes that they have committed against the Palestinian people.
The Committee, which the signed peace accords with Israel in 1993, and then recognized Israel’s right to exist, stressing the point that the Palestinian people must be protected from all Israeli practices and crimes, as a people under Israeli occupation.
In its press release, issued this weekend, the PLO’s Executive Committee, called on the international community to facilitate the return of Palestinian refugees to their Palestinian homeland and curb all, what the committee termed ‘conspiracies’ that are aimed at liquidating the Palestinian cause, once and for all.
The press release referred to the US-envisioned peace plan, the so-called ‘deal of the century’, which Palestinians rejected for they believe it would only allow a dismembered Palestinian state, without the occupied East Jerusalem as its capital.
The PLO reiterated its long-held position that the Palestinian sacrifices along the path towards freedom and statehood, will not go unrewarded and that Palestinian resistance will continue unabated, until the Israeli occupation is removed and Palestinian legitimate rights are attained.
Noteworthy, over the past several decades of conflict, Israeli occupation authorities, have held dozens of corpses of Palestinians, whom Israel killed throughout course of the occupation.
Palestinian statistical figures suggest that Israel continues to withhold 260 Palestinian corpses.
25 june 2020

The Negotiations Affairs Department (NAD) of the Palestine Liberation Organization called upon the International Criminal Court (ICC) to open an investigation into what it said was Israeli extrajudicial killing of Ahmad Erekat.
“In the strongest terms, we condemn the heinous crime committed by the Israeli occupying forces against Ahmad Mustafa Erekat (28 years old) from Jerusalem, who was executed in cold blood and mercilessly left to bleed to death.
His execution, the prevention of the Red Crescent paramedics from approaching him to provide medical aid, and the withholding of his body, are all horrific crimes. The International Criminal Court (ICC) must expedite the opening of a criminal investigation into Israeli war crimes,” NAD said in a statement.
Erekat, from Abu Dis town east of Jerusalem and related to the PLO’s secretary general Saeb Erekat, was shot dead at an Israeli army checkpoint near Bethlehem on Tuesday when he was on his way to get his mother and sisters from a beauty salon for his sister’s wedding.
“This horrific crime is at the core of Israel's violent escalation against the people of Palestine as it prepares for the further annexation of Palestinian lands in the framework of the 'Greater Israel’ colonial project. It's part of its series of crimes and systematic process of ethnic cleansing, led by the current extremist Israeli coalition, aiming to eliminate the Palestinian national presence,” said NAD in the statement.
"Ahmad's execution comes on the eve of the US administration meeting to take the final unilateral decision to allow for Israel's further annexation of lands belonging to the State of Palestine. It also comes on the eve of the UN Security Council meeting to discuss the situation in the Middle East, including Israel's illegal annexation plans,” it said.
“Israel, the occupying power, continues to act with a culture of impunity that will keep triggering such crimes. It is immoral to continue allowing the denial of the Palestinian people of their rights. We deserve nothing less than justice and freedom.
Henceforth, we call upon the ICC to open an investigation into all of Israel's extrajudicial killings of Palestinians, including the recent executions of Ahmad Erekat and Eyad al-Hallaq.
It is long overdue for the international community to take concrete action towards holding Israeli war criminals accountable for their systematic crimes,” it concluded with reference to Hallaq, an autistic Palestinian who was also shot and killed in cold blood by Israeli police in Jerusalem last month.
“In the strongest terms, we condemn the heinous crime committed by the Israeli occupying forces against Ahmad Mustafa Erekat (28 years old) from Jerusalem, who was executed in cold blood and mercilessly left to bleed to death.
His execution, the prevention of the Red Crescent paramedics from approaching him to provide medical aid, and the withholding of his body, are all horrific crimes. The International Criminal Court (ICC) must expedite the opening of a criminal investigation into Israeli war crimes,” NAD said in a statement.
Erekat, from Abu Dis town east of Jerusalem and related to the PLO’s secretary general Saeb Erekat, was shot dead at an Israeli army checkpoint near Bethlehem on Tuesday when he was on his way to get his mother and sisters from a beauty salon for his sister’s wedding.
“This horrific crime is at the core of Israel's violent escalation against the people of Palestine as it prepares for the further annexation of Palestinian lands in the framework of the 'Greater Israel’ colonial project. It's part of its series of crimes and systematic process of ethnic cleansing, led by the current extremist Israeli coalition, aiming to eliminate the Palestinian national presence,” said NAD in the statement.
"Ahmad's execution comes on the eve of the US administration meeting to take the final unilateral decision to allow for Israel's further annexation of lands belonging to the State of Palestine. It also comes on the eve of the UN Security Council meeting to discuss the situation in the Middle East, including Israel's illegal annexation plans,” it said.
“Israel, the occupying power, continues to act with a culture of impunity that will keep triggering such crimes. It is immoral to continue allowing the denial of the Palestinian people of their rights. We deserve nothing less than justice and freedom.
Henceforth, we call upon the ICC to open an investigation into all of Israel's extrajudicial killings of Palestinians, including the recent executions of Ahmad Erekat and Eyad al-Hallaq.
It is long overdue for the international community to take concrete action towards holding Israeli war criminals accountable for their systematic crimes,” it concluded with reference to Hallaq, an autistic Palestinian who was also shot and killed in cold blood by Israeli police in Jerusalem last month.