By KUNA,
Ramallah : Israeli Army Commander-in-Chief Gabi Ashkenazi sacked on Thursday an Israeli battalion leader for shooting a handcuffed Palestinian citizen who was detained during armed confrontations in western Ramallah.
According to Israeli radio, Ashkenazi considered the incident unethical and constituted leadership failure.
The military court cited a list of charges against the battalion leader and the soldier who actually shot the Palestinian detainee, within the framework of a deal struck between the prosecution and military agents, where both will be accused of inappropriate acts without imposing penalties.
Meanwhile, a human rights society that received a copy of a tape of the incident shot by a Palestinian girl, described this deal as “shameful,” and demanded that the battalion leader be accused of war crimes until he proves innocent.
The Israeli soldier who shot the detainee claims that he was ordered to do so by his battalion commander, while the commander denies this, saying that he only ordered the soldier to point his riffle at the Palestinian to intimidate him.
The Palestinian victim, Ashraf Abu-Rahma, was arrested by the Israeli troops during the clashes that took place at the separation wall, was shot in the foot with a rubber bullet in the presence of the battalion commander.