4 yıl önce

Palestinians demand justice after killing of Ahmed Erekat by Israel

Erekat, who was 27, was shot and killed by Israeli police, who claimed that he was trying to use his car to attack their officers. They have produced no evidence to support their version of the events.

AP

Israeli policemen stand around the body of a Palestinian at a checkpoint near Jerusalem, Tuesday, June 23, 2020. A Palestinian driver died Tuesday after he was shot by an Israeli policeman at a checkpoint in the West Bank in what police said was an attempted attack on Israeli military personnel. (AP Photo/Mahmoud Illean)

Israeli police have shot and killed a Palestinian man in East Jerusalem, leaving him to bleed out for more than an hour and not allowing anyone to provide help to him, according to witnesses.

According to relatives, Ahmed Erekat was running errands for his family on the day of his sister’s wedding when he was killed.

Israeli officials claim Erekat “drove quickly” towards an Israeli police officer before being shot dead in response. They have not released any security video that can help clarify whether Erekat posed a threat or explained why he was not allowed medical attention after being mortally wounded.

Erekat’s family say the claim that he deliberately attacked anyone is completely out of character and makes no sense given he was looking forward to the family occasion.

According to Haaretz, the family said that if anything had taken place, it was likely to have been a car accident, rather than a deliberate attempt to injure others.

Writing on Twitter, Palestinian American lawyer and Erekat’s cousin, Noura Erakat, wrote: “Israeli soldiers shot to kill my baby cousin, Ahmed, left him to bleed out for 1.5 hours. He was 27, he deserved to live. Israeli cowards claim it was a car-ramming incident - he was on his way to pick up his sister from the salon for her wedding tonight!”

Responding to the Israeli police response, she said: “You lie. You kill. You lie.”

Ahmed Erekat, 27, was executed by the Israeli army yesterday. He got out his car at an Israeli military checkpoint to check his tire & was shot dead. He was on his way to pick up his mother & sister from the hair salon before his sister's wedding. May his soul rest in power. https://t.co/Z6s3gzjNWg
— Dr. Yara Hawari د. يارا هواري (@yarahawari) June 24, 2020

‘Palestinian lives matter’

Erekat’s killing comes just weeks after Israeli police killed an autistic Palestinian man, Iyad Hallak, while he was on his way to a disability centre.

The deaths of the Palestinian men, at the hands of Israeli police, come amid global outrage at systemic racism and police brutality within in the US.

Hallak and Erekat are two of hundreds of Palestinians who have been killed by Israeli soldiers or police officers with little in the way of justice for their families.

The Israelis usually claim the victims were killed to prevent an act of terrorism and rarely investigate beyond that.

Many are asking why Israel can continuously get away with killing Palestinians without repercussion.

“There is not a single moment of Palestinian life that isn't disrupted by this violent apartheid. There is no excuse. This man was killed for nothing more than being Palestinian,” said one Twitter user.

Also on Twitter, Palestinian comedian and law professor, Ahmed Zahr, wrote: “To understand anything, you must first understand that Israel sees Palestinian as subhuman, unworthy of the most basic respect and dignity. No justice.”