The Seattle Times
Nation & World: Monday, December 23, 2002
Charges of bone-breaking beatings by Israelis probed
By Nasser Shiyoukhi
The Associated Press
HEBRON, West Bank — Israeli border police operating in the West Bank city of Hebron have detained Palestinians, then forced them to choose whether to have a nose, arm or leg broken in a sort of "lottery," Palestinians alleged yesterday.
The police investigative unit of the Israeli Justice Ministry is reviewing the complaints and may open an investigation, said ministry spokesman Jacob Galanti. Israel's army spokesman said it did not know of specific cases of such beatings but was looking into the charges.
While Palestinians often accuse Israeli security forces of beating them, Palestinian doctors and security officials in Hebron said such incidents increased after an attack there Nov. 11 in which Palestinian militants ambushed Israeli security forces, killing 12.
A day after the fatal attack, Israeli troops moved into the Palestinian-controlled section of the city and imposed the curfew throughout the city.
Rujdi al-Jamal, a resident of Hebron, said he was among a group of Palestinians caught after curfew.
"When they stopped us they were really angry and you could see the fire in their eyes and they were tough," al-Jamal said.
He claimed the border policemen forced the Palestinians to choose which part of their bodies they wanted broken: the nose, an arm or a leg. Or they could choose to be shot.
Jamal said he chose his hand, and the policemen broke it with a rifle butt.
Another Palestinian told the Israeli newspaper Yediot Ahronot that border policemen detained him and four friends and took them to a Jewish settlement in Hebron. The security forces prepared pieces of paper for what they called a "lottery" to decide which parts of the Palestinians' bodies would be broken, or the detainees could decide themselves, the unnamed Palestinian told the daily.
"I chose the nose because nothing hurts as much as a broken arm or broken leg," the man, a student of Islamic studies, told the paper.
Another Palestinian, who also refused to give his name, told the newspaper that border police who stopped him while he was traveling in his car said he could choose between a broken arm or a broken car. He said he chose his arm, thinking the forces would not follow through on the threat. But the border policemen then broke his arm, he said.
Palestinians who allege they were beaten will meet today with officials from the police investigative unit, paper reported.
The army spokesman said it had not found any truth to the charges in an initial investigation of cases in the newspaper report but would continue to look into the accusations.
In related developments yesterday:
• The Palestinian Cabinet postponed elections, scheduled for Jan. 20, until 100 days after Israeli troops leave the West Bank. "It has become clear to all of us that to hold the elections while all Palestinian cities are under occupation is clearly impossible," Information Minister Yasser Abed Rabbo said after the Cabinet meeting.
The postponement is likely to delay reforms in the Palestinian Authority demanded by the United States and Israel as a step toward resuming peace talks. Israel says Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat is responsible for more than two years of Mideast violence; the Bush administration has no direct dealings with Arafat, hoping he would be shunted aside in elections.
• Sen. Joe Lieberman, D-Conn., considered a front-runner for his party's 2004 presidential nomination, met Israel Prime Minister Ariel Sharon in Jerusalem and equated Israel's struggle with the Palestinians with the U.S. war against terrorism. Lieberman, a Jew, said "the conflict that you are involved in here is being seen in the United States now as part of a larger global conflict against terrorism."
• Israel ordered the closure of a weekly newspaper, Sawt Al Haq Wal Hurrieh, or "Voice of Freedom and Justice," published by the radical branch of the Israeli Arab Islamic Movement, charging that the paper supports terrorism. The editors have 15 days to appeal.
Copyright © 2002 The Seattle Times Company |
