Soldier dies in Sarkozy farewell ceremony

VIDEO - Tragedy at farewell ceremony: A Border Guard officer tasked with a perimeter security assignement during the farewell ceremony for French President Nicolas Sarkozy at Ben-Gurion Airport was killed after apparently shooting himself. Video courtesy of Infolive.tv An ambulance was rushed to the scene to treat the soldier, but a short time later he was pronounced dead.Police officials estimated that the officer committed suicide. The incident caused a scare during the ceremony, prompting body guards to rush VIPs away from the area. The armored cars of President Shimon Peres and Prime Minister Ehud Olmert were rushed to the ceremony site, and the two were taken away from the area. Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's bodyguard (Photo: Avi Ohayon, GPO) Meanwhile, the French president was taken into his airplane, which was waiting on the runway, by his own bodyguards. After the circumstances of the incident became clear, the bodyguards allowed Peres and Olmert to board the plane and bid Sarkozy farewell. A member of Peres' entourage told Ynet, "There was no panic a routine procedure was activated by the prime minister's and president's bodyguards. The incident is behind us and the French president is on his way back home." After the gunshot was heard, security forces began searching for the shooter, who was found lying on the ground. A security officer who witnessed the shooting recounted the incident to the police. Officer's family: He didn’t commit suicide The dead Border Guard officer was identified as Raid Asaad Ghanan, 32, of the Druze village of Beit Jan. his family members refused to believe that he had committed suicide. "We scornfully reject the claims that our son took his own life," a family member said. "He was a kindhearted and happy person. He had a family and there was no reason for him to do such a horrible thing." The officer's father, Asaad Ghanan, said that his son had left the house on Tuesday morning in good spirits. "He had a family, he had friends, he had plans for the future and had no reason to commit suicide," the father said. Naif, Raid's brother, said that the police representatives who informed the family of their son's death, had told them that the circumstances of the incidents were unclear and would be probed by an investigating officer. "It is unthinkable that my brother took his own life. We believe this was an accident, or even an incident in which my brother was accidentally shot by one of the security officials in the area." Raid's cousin, Mouin Ghanan, said that the officer was born and raised in Beit Jan. "He excelled in everything, starting at school, through his military service in the Givati Brigade, and later continued to serve the State when he joined the Border Guard." Raid's mother Hanna was killed in an accident several years ago. He was survived by his father, wife, two children, three brothers and five sisters. Eli Senyor and Ahiya Raved contributed to this report

Soldier dies in Sarkozy farewell ceremony

(Video) Drama at Ben-Gurion Airport: Raid Asaad Ghanan, a Border Guard officer tasked with perimeter security assignment during farewell ceremony for French president Sarkozy, shoots himself; VIPs at airports rushed away from scene by bodyguards