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October 2000 riots
Photo: Elad Gershgoren
Photo: Gil Yohanan
Shabiro: No one will tell us how to investigate or claim biased action
Photo: Gil Yohanan

Families: Police party to crime

Families charge police covered up October riots evidence, after report recommends no action against officers involved in death of 13 Arabs; relatives vow to continue fight until responsible parties brought to justice, threaten to turn to international court

The police decision not to charge officers in connection with the deaths of 13 Arabs during the riots of October 2000 constitute an acquittal of murderers, a group representing the victims’ families charged Sunday.

 

“Security forces know about every fly that moves around in the territories, but don’t know what happened among their own people?” said Dr. Marwan Dawiri from Adalah, the Arab-Israeli human rights group representing relatives of the 13 victims.

 

In a press conference in Jerusalem, Dawiri charged Arab are subject to discrimination by Israel. Prior to the press conference, dozens of victims’ relatives waited outside wearing white shirts with images of their loved ones and holding up signs calling to bring their children’s killers to justice.

 

Hassan Asala, who represents the families, read their reaction to the police report, saying law enforcement authorities failed to act properly in the past five years.

 

“The police recommendations published today were expected in light of the police investigation unit’s consistent failures in the investigation of our sons’ deaths,” he said. “Those failures continue to this day.”

 

“The Police Investigations Unit covered up evidence instead of exposing it and draft indictments against all those who hold responsibility for our sons’ deaths,” Asala said. “By doing that, the Police Investigation Unit became a party to a crime.”

 

“We, the parents of the victims, along with our sons and daughters and the entire Arab public, will not stop our fight until all those responsible for our sons’ deaths are brought to justice,” he said. “Our struggle has not ended now.”

 

One mother faints

 

Adalah Director-General Hassan Jabareen also issued scathing remarks, saying the Police Investigation Unit’s report is an indictment against the unit.

 

“They agree the shooting wasn’t justified. They say there are victims, but no guilty parties,” he says. “Who’s guilty then? Those who didn’t sin?”

 

While Jabareen spoke, a relative of one of the victims began yelling, ripped the police report, and shouted: “That’s what we think about the report.” Minutes later, a mother of one of the victims fainted, contributing to the tense atmosphere at the press conference.

 

Many reporters from both Israel and abroad, including those from Arab television stations, attended the press conference. Once it was over, the families faced a barrage of questions in Arabic.

 

Families criticized

 

The Police Investigations Unit said Sunday it would not file indictments against the policemen involved in the October 2000 riots, where 13 Israeli Arabs were killed.

 

Police officials also criticized the victims' families, who refused to cooperate with the investigation.

 

The committee said that some cases simply had "insufficient proof" to press charges, and in others the police officers in question managed to avoid arrest.

 

Conclusions from the police report indicate clear contradictions in several cases, in comparison to the original Or Commission recommendations.

 

For instance, the Or Commission determined that Major General Alik Ron "was responsible for sniper fire aimed at the Umm el-Fahm protesters, without just cause and against police orders."

 

However, the police investigation report said it was "unable to establish a reasonable level of criminal suspicion that Ron's decision to use sniper fire was unjustifiable."

 

Or Commission slams police, political echelon

 

The report also said the decision to "close the cases follows an examination of the events through legal and criminal perspectives, where the level of reasonable suspicion is at the very highest."

 

"We were obligated to consider whether the Or findings called for reasonable suspicions to criminally charge those involved. Our findings indicate that no such evidence exists, and so we were obligated to close the case." 

 

The police report further explains that "while the results are difficult and painful, we had to examine the events that occurred across Israel - severe disturbances, which turned into unprecedented rioting in certain areas including blocking thoroughfares, removing traffic signs and lights, severe damage to public property, and assaults on innocent bystanders and security forces."

 

The report added that Molotov cocktails, stones, iron pieces and other dangerous materials were used to increase the violence.

 

Thirteen Israeli Arabs were killed by police gunfire during the October 2000 uprisings, after officers entered Arab towns and villages to disperse the crowds and reopen the main thoroughfares.

 

The Or Commission was established to investigate the affair, following Arab anger over the killings. Its recommendations were published in September 2003, where it slammedboth the police and the political echelon.

 

As a result, the Justice Ministry's Police Investigation Unit launched an inquiry into the affair.

 

'Victims' families refused to cooperate'

 

During the press conference, Police Investigations Unit Head Herzl Shabiro said several public figures and politicians tried to interfere with police findings, claiming the investigation discriminated against the Arab sector.

 

"No one will tell us how to investigate or claim biased action," he said. 

 

"It was not possible to view the incident when it occurred and freeze it for a moment in time," he said. "Our aim was not to examine police judgment, but to rather find proof beyond reasonable doubt. The investigation was conducted with its hands bound and the families refused to allow for autopsies."

 

In response to the contradictions to the Or recommendations, Shabiro said, "It is impossible to honestly conduct a criminal investigation at the same time as a governmental commission."

 

"Even the government investigation could not locate nine out of the 13 specific shooters. One must remember that at the time there were severe disturbances…no one blames the victim, but it is impossible to ignore the fact that without any cooperation, we were unable to conduct a full criminal investigation." 

 

The report also criticizes the victim's families for hindering the investigation.

 

"In most cases civilians and the victims' families refused to cooperate with the investigators. They were approached on many occasions through the media and were promised immunity in exchange for testimonies," the report said.

 

- Roee Nahmias and Ahiya Raved contributed to the report

 


פרסום ראשון: 09.18.05, 14:50
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