The Israeli army has said it will investigate the killing of a cameraman for the Reuters news agency, after a human rights group said it found evidence suggesting that an Israeli tank crew fired recklessly or deliberately at the journalist.
Cameraman Fadel Shana, 23, was killed in Gaza last Wednesday, the bloodiest day of fighting between Israeli troops and Gaza militants in a month. Just before his death, Shana was filming an Israeli tank in the distance, and his final footage shows the tank firing a shell in his direction.
Fighting continued yesterday morning with a pre-dawn clash between Hamas and Israeli forces near the north Gaza town of Beit Hanoun, in which one militant was killed and two wounded, Hamas and Palestinian medical officials said.
PHOTO :EPA
The Israeli military said that troops operating in the area came under attack by militants, including one with an anti-tank missile. Israeli forces counterattacked with ground and air fire, a spokeswoman said, adding that there were no casualties on the Israeli side.
Palestinian medics said two teens wounded in Wednesday’s shelling died of their wounds on Sunday, bring the total number of Palestinians killed in the shelling to six. In all, 23 Palestinians were killed that day.
Palestinian journalists have staged protests following Shana’s death and on Sunday several dozen journalists marched in the West Bank city of Ramallah. The marchers, including Palestinian Information Minister Riad Malki, were led by a group carrying a stretcher with a camera and a tripod. They held a banner reading: “The occupiers are responsible for the blood of our colleague.”
The Israeli military announced on Sunday it was launching an investigation, which would be reviewed by the Military Advocate General.
“The IDF [Israel Defense Forces] wishes to emphasize that unlike terrorist organizations, not only does it not deliberately target uninvolved civilians, it also uses means to avoid such incidents,” a statement said. “Reports claiming the opposite are false and misleading.”
The announcement comes after the New York-based group Human Rights Watch said its own investigation found evidence that the tank crew fired either recklessly or deliberately.
“Israeli soldiers did not make sure they were aiming at a military target before firing and there is evidence suggesting they actually targeted the journalists,” said Joe Stork, Middle East director at Human Rights Watch. The group called on the Israeli military to investigate.
Also on Sunday, a senior Israeli army officer provided new details about a Hamas suicide attack at a Gaza border crossing the day before.
Hamas militants had driven an armored vehicle and two jeeps, made to look like Israeli military vehicles, toward the Kerem Shalom crossing between Israel and Gaza under the cover of heavy morning fog on Saturday.
The armored vehicle broke through the crossing fence, followed by the two jeeps, each packed with about 300kg of explosives, said the officer, who was posted at the border crossing.
The first jeep exploded at an army watchtower. The officer said he and his men came to investigate when he noticed a second jeep about 6m away. The officer said the jeep aroused his suspicion. He said he yelled “car bomb, car bomb” and ordered his men back into their armored vehicles.
When the second jeep went off, most soldiers had managed to get back into their vehicles, he said.
At one point, the driver of the Palestinian armored vehicle emerged.
“He went toward the forces that had been wounded, and he was shot dead,” the officer said.
Thirteen Israeli soldiers were wounded in the attack.
The officer said three Hamas militants were killed — two in the jeep explosions and one in the shooting, confirming Hamas’ account that three of its members had been killed in the attack. The Israeli military had previously said four Hamas militants were killed.
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