Israel Drops Prosecution of Jewish Settler Who Killed Palestinian
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – The Israeli regime’s State Prosecutor has closed the case of an Israeli settler who stabbed a Palestinian man to death in June in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
The prosecution informed the family on Thursday that the investigation into the unnamed settler was closed “on the basis that the attack was a case of self-defense”, the youth’s uncle told Al Jazeera.
Ali Hassan Harb, 27, was stabbed in the chest and killed on June 21 by an Israeli settler while on the Harb family’s land in the town of Iskaka on the outskirts of Salfit city, near the illegal Jewish settlement of Ariel, according to rights groups and Harb’s family.
He had gone down to the land along with other family members after a group of settlers arrived to set up an outpost.
Naeem Harb, the main witness to the attack and the youth’s uncle, said the family intends to keep pushing for accountability despite the closure of the investigation.
The State Prosecutor released a statement on Thursday saying, “after reviewing evidence in the case, including statements from those involved in the incident … the decision was made to close the case since the claim of self-defense could not be ruled out,” according to Israeli media.
Soon after the killing, Naeem had said that the attack happened in the presence of the Israeli army.
He told Al Jazeera he was approximately a meter away from his nephew when he was stabbed.
“The settlers came to our land and the killing happened in front of the army’s eyes and under their protection,” said Naeem. “The settlers were not exposed to any danger. We went to the land and told them to leave, and they left, and then came back with the army and killed the martyr, Ali.”
Settler violence and attacks are a daily reality for Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, where at least 600,000 Israeli settlers live in approximately 250 illegal settlements, according to rights groups.
The vast majority of investigations into attacks are closed without any punishment for the settlers.
According to Yesh Din, since 2005, 92 percent of cases were closed at the end of an investigation without an indictment filed.
