Tuesday, September 29, 2015

Israel relaxes Live-Fire Rules against Palestinian Stone-Throwers

Palestinians throw stones towards Israeli border police 
during clashes at a checkpoint between Shuafat refugee 
camp and Jerusalem. Photograph: Ammar Awad/Reuters
Prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu pushes through tough rules allowing Israeli forces to fire live .22 rounds during protests
Israel’s security forces will have greater latitude to use live ammunition against Palestinians throwing stones and firebombs – including against minors – as part of a tough new series of measures pushed through by the prime minister, Binyamin Netanyahu.
Under the new rules, approved unanimously by the security cabinet on Thursday night, police and soldiers will be able to fire .22 calibre live rounds from Ruger rifles when they judge that not only their own lives are in danger but also those of civilians.
An Israeli police officer fires teargas during clashes with 
Palestinian stone-throwers near Jerusalem. Ministers 
passed new measures following a recent rise in roadside 
attacks against Israeli vehicles. 
Photograph: Ammar Awad/Reuters
Ministers passed the measures following a recent rise in roadside attacks against Israeli vehicles in Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank.
The change in open-fire regulations comes in a package that has seen opposition both from human rights groups and the Israeli attorney general, Yehuda Weinstein, including tough new sentencing guidelines for throwing stones and molotov cocktails, as well as heavy fines.
Although Israeli officials argue that the Ruger rounds are less lethal than heavier ammunition, the use of live fire for riot control remains deeply controversial. According to human rights groups, in 2014 alone 12 Palestinian minors were shot and killed by Israeli forces during protests and clashes in the West Bank.
The new rules follow a recent heated political debate over how to counter stone-throwing in some Palestinian neighbourhoods of East Jerusalem and on West Bank roads, which gained added momentum after the recent death of an elderly motorist who died after crashing his car during an alleged stone-throwing incident in the city.
“We intend to change the norm that has become established here: that the state of Israel allows these deadly and murderous objects to be thrown without response and without being thwarted,” said Netanyahu in a statement issued after the vote.
“Until recently, police officers would open fire when their own lives were at risk,” Netanyahu said. “From now on, they will be allowed to open fire – and they will know they have a right to do so – when anyone’s life is in danger.
Read the rest of the story HERE.

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