Border Guards indicted for abusing Palestinian
Indictment filed against two former officers paints picture of abuse against Palestinian at checkpoint. 'I was severely beaten all over my body,' victim says
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Two former Border Guard Police officers, Liel Shamir and Ron Halevi, are charged with aggravated battery and abuse of power. The attack in question place in 2010 when Tysear Gamal, a resident of Hebron, was driving to Nablus as part of his work. As he approached the "Kiosk" checkpoint, near Bethlehem his car was cut off by another car and in response Gamal honked his horn.
One of the officers then instructed Gamal to wait with his car on the side of the road and to present his ID card. Gamal handed over his ID card and explained to the officers that he had honked in response to being cut off and that the incident was recorded on the checkpoint's security camera.
Abusing their power
At this stage, one of the officers asked to search his person, and when Gamal responded positively he was taken to a small room in the checkpoint.
Inside the room the abuse began. The indictment claimed that "while in the room, Liel Shamir head-butted Gamal, causing his glasses to fall on the floor. When he bent down to pick them up, the officers began beating him across his entire body, specifically below the waistline, with one officer using a club and the other using his personal firearm."
The indictment noted that when Gamal told the two that he suffers from kidney problems, the two hit him even harder, specifically in the kidney area.
As a result, Gamal fell to the floor and began to bleed from his mouth. An ambulance was called and he was rushed to a hospital in Bethlehem. In the hospital the Palestinian was diagnosed with internal hemorrhaging.
According to the indictment, "the officers attacked Gamal and caused him serious injuries, while misusing their power as officers."
Liel Shamir said in response that "the story was told to the investigators word for word and I did not deny the truth. I did not hit nor attack anyone. I have not done a single thing that is attributed to me and I am willing to take a polygraph. The indictment tells a story that never took place. I am innocent." Ran Halevi refused to respond to the report.
