Hundreds Mourn Palestinian Shot Dead by Israeli Forces in Hebron
Hebron, 17 Jumadil Akhir 1437/27 March 2016 (MINA) – Hundreds of Palestinians attended a funeral held on Saturday in the southern West Bank city of Hebron for Ramzi Aziz al-Qasrawi, who was shot dead Thursday after allegedly stabbing and moderately wounding an Israeli soldier.
The funeral procession started from al-Ahli Hospital in Hebron before heading to al-Qasrawi’s house in the neighborhood of Wadi al-Hariya. Mourners then carried the body and marched to al-Murabitoun mosque where hundreds performed the funeral prayer, Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA) quoted Ma’an as reporting.
Many waved Palestinian and factional flags as angry mourners shouted patriotic slogans denouncing the ongoing Israeli occupation and its “oppressive policies” against the Palestinian people.
Al-Qasrawi was shot alongside Abed al-Fattah Yusri al-Sharif after the two allegedly stabbed an Israeli soldier in the shoulder at a military checkpoint in the Tel Rumeida area of Hebron.
A rights worker and resident of the area began filming directly after the two were shot.
Al-Qasrawi was killed immediately and al-Sharif was shot in the head by an Israeli soldier minutes later from point-blank range, despite lying incapacitated on the pavement. The body of al-Sharif is still being detained by Israeli forces.
The UN called the incident a gruesome extrajudicial execution while Amnesty International demanded al-Sharif’s death be investigated as a war crime.
The Palestinian who caught the event on film told Ma’an he received threats the following day from Israeli settlers living illegally in the area and said he now feared for his and his family’s safety.
Al-Qasrawi and al-Sharif were among more than 200 Palestinians to be killed since a wave of unrest swept the occupied Palestinian territory in October.
The majority were killed while carrying out or attempting to carry out small-scale attacks that have left nearly 30 Israelis dead.
Several Palestinians that have been killed were shot dead under circumstances that rights groups and the international community have labelled extrajudicial executions carried out by Israeli forces.
While Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu and Minister of Defense Moshe Yaalon both condemned the behavior of the soldier who shot al-Sharif, Palestinain MK Ayman Odeh called for Netanyahu to be tried with the soldier responsible for Thursday’s execution, alongside other Israeli officials responsible for incitement against Palestinians. (T/R07/R01)
Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)
