Soldier recorded firing gunshots in Hebron

An IDF soldier residing in the West Bank settlement of Kiryat Arba is suspected of firing a weapon, making threats and making illegal use of his gun during a clash between Palestinians and settlers in Hebron last month. Video documentation of the incident was obtained by Ynet on Tuesday. The soldier, Corporal Nahum Ben-Yaakov of the Givati brigade, was arrested and remanded until Thursday. Military Judge Colonel Nir Aviram said, "A soldier, even when dressed in civilian clothing, must not make use of his weapon in the manner that was described." Ben-Yaakov admitted to shooting in the air, but explained that he did so only after "a stone passed by his head". The suspect fired his weapon again a few minutes later. The video shows the soldier threatening the cameraman with his weapon, and demanding he stop filming. A Border Guard officer near the shooter warned the cameraman, "Watch out, he'll put a bullet through your head." The military prosecution plans to file an indictment against the shooter this week. According to evidence collected so far by the military police, a riot broke out on November 29 in the wadi between Kiryat Arba and Hebron, after a settler entered a closed-off military zone. Border Guard forces tried to escort the settler out of the area, when violent clashes broke out between settlers and Palestinians, and some 200 settlers arrived at the scene. A Palestinian cameraman working for B'Tselem documented the clash. In the video obtained by Ynet, gunshots in the air can be heard, and a young man holding a rifle is seen threatening the cameraman, saying, "I will break your camera". During a police investigation, the man seen in the video was identified as a Givati fighter. The incident was handed over to the Military Police and the soldier was arrested a few days ago. The prosecutor, Lieutenant Guy Conforti, said in a hearing held at the Southern Military Court that an indictment would be filed against the suspect in the near future and the prosecution will request to keep him in custody until the end of legal proceedings against him. "One can tell that the suspect was very upset and looked agitated before arriving at the scene of the incident," Conforti said, "it is not clear why he cocked his weapon before seeing if there was even any danger." The prosecutor argued the soldier should not have taken any part in the incident and his actions could only lead to an escalation. Conforti rejected Ben-Yaakov's argument that his actions were in response to an actual threat to his life. Chief Judge of the Southern Military Court Colonel Nir Aviram, who also watched the video, did not get the impression that there was a threat to the life of the soldier or the people around him. Dado Bar-Kalifa, the soldier's commander said, "This is a serious incident" that a civilian who is also a soldier shows up with his weapon and starts shooting. "No one authorized the shooting, because he doesn't have a commander and he was not on duty," Bar-Kalifa said, adding that he too did not see a life threatening situation in the video. "He should have stepped back and not been involved." Ben-Yaakov's lawyer Chai Haber told Ynet he would object to the soldier's remand until the end of proceedings. "What do they expect from a soldier that feels his life is being threatened? To sit back or to try to make contact? "In the video it can be seen that after the shooting in the air, all the forces in the area fired warning shots themselves, therefore, what he did does not call for any arrest." The IDF Spokesperson's Unit said in response to the incident, "A Military Police investigation has been opened, and upon its completion, its findings will be transferred to the Military Prosecution for consideration."

Soldier recorded firing gunshots in Hebron

Exclusive video obtained by Ynet reveals IDF ununiformed soldier threatening, firing gunshots in the air during clash between settlers, Palestinians in Hebron. Suspect arrested, claims was in life threatening situation