UN urges probe into Israeli killing of disabled man

By Fatih Erel

GENEVA

The UN on Tuesday called on Israel to open an independent and impartial investigation into the killing of a wheelchair-bound amputee by Israeli security forces last Friday in Gaza.

Ibrahim Nayef Ibrahim Abu Thurayeh, a 29-year-old man from Gaza who reportedly had both legs amputated after an Israeli attack in 2008, was among hundreds of Palestinians who protested the illegal U.S. move to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's "undivided" capital.

The killing is "truly shocking", said Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, the UN high commissioner for human rights, said in a statement.

Al Hussein said Abu Thurayeh was among the protesters marching across a farmland following Friday prayers on Dec. 15 when he was apparently hit by a bullet in the head approximately 20 meters from a fence between Gaza and Israel.

According to UN figures, the use of live ammunition has injured over 220 people in Gaza, including 95 on Dec. 15 alone, in addition to tens of others who sustained injuries from tear gas or rubber bullets.

The high commissioner called on Israel to respect international law standards on the use of force, and in particular of live ammunition.

"The facts gathered so far by my staff in Gaza strongly suggest that the force used against Ibrahim Abu Thurayeh was excessive," he said.

"There is nothing whatsoever to suggest that Ibrahim Abu Thurayeh was posing an imminent threat of death or serious injury when he was killed," Al Hussein said.

"Given his severe disability, which must have been clearly visible to those who shot him, his killing is incomprehensible -- a truly shocking and wanton act," he added.

At least eight Palestinians have been martyred by the Israeli army and more than 550 others were injured due to plastic bullets and tear gas, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.

"This level of casualties raises serious concerns as to whether the force used by Israeli forces was properly calibrated to the threat," he said.

"These events, including the loss of five irreplaceable human lives, can sadly be traced directly back to the unilateral U.S. announcement on the status of Jerusalem, which breaks international consensus and was dangerously provocative," he said.

Tension has been high in the Palestinian territories since U.S. President Donald Trump officially recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital earlier this month, triggering protests across the Arab and Muslim world as well as worldwide condemnations.

Jerusalem's status has long been considered a final status issue to be determined by Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations, and Trump's decision is widely seen as undercutting that longstanding understanding.

East Jerusalem, which Palestinians are seeking as the capital of their state, was occupied by Israel in 1967.