2014-07-23

ISRAELI WAR CRIMES OF REGULAR ARMY IN PALESTINE: GAZA: PALESTINIAN KILLED 'BY ISRAELI SNIPER' AS HE SEARCHED FOR FAMILY





Gaza: Palestinian killed 'by Israeli sniper' as he searched for family


Palestinian man repeatedly shot and ultimately killed by a sniper while he searched for his family in the devastated neighborhood of Shujaiyeh.

The man, wearing a green shirt and black pants, was reportedly shot by a sniper while trying to cross an alleyway in between two buildings. Soon after, he is shot by two additional rounds while on the ground.

The attack occurred as volunteers and rescue crews were attempting to uncover bodies during an announced ceasefire after a day of the most intense violence and destruction so far in the 14-day operation. The activist organization International Solidarity Movement, which shot and uploaded the video online, described it in a statement:

The Israeli military just shot a Gazan man trying to reach his family, during an announced ceasefire. He was with a group of municipality workers and international human rights defenders who were attempting to retrieve injured people in the Shujaiya neighborhood.... They shot him, and then continued to fire as he was on the ground. We had no choice but to retreat. We couldn't reach him due to the artillery fire and then he stopped moving.

Human rights organizations and international bodies have criticized Israel for the mounting civilian death toll since the military operation began in Gaza two weeks ago. Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF) said in a statement yesterday, "Since the beginning of Operation Protective Edge in the Gaza strip, the majority of the dead and wounded in Gaza are civilians, and medical workers are also coming under fire."