Israeli forces use reckless force in West Bank

Israeli forces have displayed "a callous disregard for human life by killing dozens of Palestinian civilians, including children, in the occupied West Bank over the past three years with near total impunity," said Amnesty International on Thursday. In its report, "Trigger-happy: Israels use of excessive force in the West Bank," describes mounting bloodshed and human rights abuses in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT) as a result of the Israeli forces use of unnecessary, arbitrary and brutal force against Palestinians since January 2011. In all cases examined by Amnesty International, Palestinians killed by Israeli soldiers did not appear to be posing a direct and immediate threat to life. In some, there is evidence that they were victims of wilful killings, which would amount to war crimes. "The report presents a body of evidence that shows a harrowing pattern of unlawful killings and unwarranted injuries of Palestinian civilians by Israeli forces in the West Bank," said Philip Luther, Director of the Middle East and North Africa Programme at Amnesty International. Amnesty condemned the frequency and persistence of using arbitrary and abusive force against peaceful protesters in the West Bank by Israeli soldiers and police officers "and the impunity enjoyed by perpetrators" suggests that it is carried out as a matter of policy. Amnesty International has documented the killings of 22 Palestinian civilians in the West Bank last year, at least 14 of which were in the context of protests. Most were young adults under the age of 25. At least four were children. According to UN figures, more West Bank Palestinians were killed by Israeli forces in 2013 than the total number killed in 2011 and 2012 combined. Forty-five were killed in the past three years. Peaceful protesters, civilian bystanders, human rights activists and journalists are among those who have been killed or injured. In the last three years at least 261 Palestinians, including 67 children, have been seriously injured by live ammunition fired by Israeli forces in the West Bank. An astonishing number of Palestinian civilians in the West Bank - more than 8,500, including 1,500 children have been shot and seriously wounded by other means, including rubber-coated metal bullets and the reckless use of tear gas, since January 2011. In some cases documented, victims have also died as a result of their use. "The staggering numbers of wounded provide a sobering reminder of the relentless daily danger faced by Palestinians living in the occupied West Bank, " said Luther. Several victims were shot in the back suggesting that they were targeted as they tried to flee and posed no genuine threat to the lives of members of Israeli forces or others. In several cases, well-armoured Israeli forces have resorted to lethal means to crack down on stone-throwing protestors causing needless loss of life. In recent years, the West Bank has seen continuing protests against the prolonged Israeli occupation and a litany of related repressive policies and practices. "These include the ever-expanding unlawful Israeli settlements, the 800km-long fence/wall, forcible house demolitions, forced evictions, Israeli military checkpoints, roads reserved for use by Israeli settlers from which Palestinians are excluded and other restrictions on the movement of Palestinians in the occupied territories." Amnesty International is calling on the Israeli authorities to instruct their forces to refrain from lethal force, including the use of live fire and rubber-coated bullets, except when strictly necessary to protect lives. They must also respect the right of Palestinians to peaceful assembly. Israeli soldiers have a long history of using excessive force against Palestinian demonstrators in the West Bank extending back to at least the first "Intifada" (uprising) in 1987, the organisation recalled. Source: KUNA