"Gaza Island"

[PalestineMyHeart 1,897]

Be that as it may - legal issues notwithstanding - I just don't see the IDF shooting "innocent" unarmed passengers, unless their lives were threatened.

Read the report. According to the OHCHR investigation, at least 6 of the dead, including U.S. citizen Furkan Dogan, were murdered execution-style at close range with "kill shots," some of them as they lay on the deck so seriously wounded that there was no chance they could pose any threat to anyone (except maybe bleeding on them.)

Deaths occurring on the top deck (roof)

Furkan Doğan

Furkan Doğan, a 19-year-old with dual Turkish and United States citizenship, was on the central area of the top deck filming with a small video camera when he was first hit with live fire. It appears that he was lying on the deck in a conscious, or semi-conscious, state for some time. In total Furkan received five bullet wounds, to the face, head, back thorax, left leg and foot. All of the entry wounds were on the back of his body, except for the face wound which entered to the right of his nose. According to forensic analysis, tattooing around the wound in his face indicates that the shot was delivered at point blank range. Furthermore, the trajectory of the wound, from bottom to top, together with a vital abrasion to the left shoulder that could be consistent with the bullet exit point, is compatible with the shot being received while he was lying on the ground on his back. The other wounds were not the result of firing in contact, near contact or close range, but it is not otherwise possible to determine the exact firing range. The wounds to the leg and foot were most likely received in a standing position.

İbrahim Bilgen

İbrahim Bilgen, a 60-year-old Turkish citizen, from Siirt in Turkey, was on the top deck and was one of the first passengers to be shot. He received a bullet wound to the chest, the trajectory of which was from above and not at close range. He had a further two bullet

wounds to the right side of the back and right buttock, both back to front. These wounds would not have caused instant death, but he would have bled to death within a short time without medical attention. Forensic evidence shows that he was shot in the side of the head with a soft baton round at such close proximity and that an entire bean bag and its wadding penetrated the skull and lodged in the brain. He had a further bruise on the right flank consistent with another beanbag wound. The wounds are consistent with the deceased initially being shot from soldiers on board the helicopter above and receiving a further wound to the head while lying on the ground, already wounded.

Fahri Yaldiz

Fahri Yaldiz, a 42-year-old Turkish citizen from Adiyaman, received five bullet wounds, one to the chest, one to the left leg and three to the right leg. The chest wound was caused by a bullet that entered near the left nipple and hit the heart and lungs before exiting from the shoulder. This injury would have caused rapid death.

Ali Heyder Bengi

According to the pathology report, Ali Heyder Bengi, a 38-year-old Turkish citizen from Diyarbakir, received six bullet wounds (one in the chest, one in the abdomen, one in the right arm, one in the right thigh and two in the left hand). One bullet lodged in the chest area. None of the wounds would have been instantly fatal, but damage to the liver caused bleeding which would have been fatal if not stemmed. There are several witness accounts which suggest that Israeli soldiers shot the deceased in the back and chest at close range while he was lying on the deck as a consequence of initial bullet wounds.

Deaths occurring on the bridge deck, portside

Cevdet Kiliçlar

Cevdet Kiliçlar, a 38-year-old Turkish citizen from Istanbul, was on the Mavi Marmara, in his capacity as a photographer employed by IHH. At the moment he was shot he was standing on the bridge deck on the port side of the ship near to the door leading to the main stairwell and was attempting to photograph Israeli soldiers on the top deck. According to the pathology reports, he received a single bullet to his forehead between the eyes. The bullet followed a horizontal trajectory which crossed the middle of the brain from front to back. He would have died instantly.

Cengiz Akyüz and Cengiz Songür

Cengiz Akyüz, 41, from Hatay and Cengiz Songür, 46, from Izmir, both Turkish citizens, were injured on the bridge deck in close succession by live fire from above. They had been sheltering and were shot as they attempted to move inside the door leading to the stairwell. Cengiz Akyüz received a shot to the head and it is probable that he died instantly. The pathology report shows four wounds: to the neck, face, chest and thigh. Cengiz Songür received a single bullet to the upper central thorax below the neck, shot from a high angle, which lodged in the right thoracic cavity injuring the heart and aorta. Unsuccessful efforts were made by doctors inside the ship to resuscitate him through heart massage.

Çetin Topçuoğlu

Çetin Topçuoğlu, a 54-year-old Turkish citizen from Adana had been involved in helping to bring injured passengers inside the ship to be treated. He was also shot close to the door on the bridge deck. He did not die instantly and his wife, who was also on board the ship, was with him when he died. He was shot by three bullets. One bullet entered from the top the soft tissues of the right side of the back of the head, exited from the neck and then reentered into the thorax. Another bullet entered the left buttock and lodged in the right pelvis. The third entered the right groin and exited from the lower back. There are indications that the victim may have been in a crouching or bending position when this wound was sustained.

...

Conclusion, page 38, section 170:

The circumstances of the killing of at least six of the passengers were in a manner consistent with an extra-legal, arbitrary and summary execution. Furkan Dogan and Ibrahim Bilgen were shot at near range while the victims were lying injured on the top deck. Cevdet Kiliclar, Cengiz Akyuz, Cengiz Songur and Cetin Topcuoglu were shot on the bridge deck while not participating in activities that represented a threat to any Israeli soldier. In these instances and possibly other killings on the Mavi Marmara, Israeli forces carried out extralegal, arbitrary and summary executions prohibited by international human rights law, specifically article 6 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/hrcouncil/docs/15session/A.HRC.15.21_en.pdf

[mawilson 2,133]

Read the report. According to the OHCHR investigation, at least 6 of the dead, including U.S. citizen Furkan Dogan, were murdered execution-style at close range with "kill shots," some of them as they lay on the deck so seriously wounded that there was no chance they could pose any threat to anyone (except maybe bleeding on them.)

So what, they just decided to shoot them for fun? BS.

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

So what, they just decided to shoot them for fun? BS.

Why not? Soldiers have been doing that ####### forever. Good kids put in the wrong environment do evil things.

[PalestineMyHeart 1,897]

So what, they just decided to shoot them for fun? BS.

Maybe they were trigger-happy, or poorly trained, or just following orders - there are several possibilities, and some might overlap. It is known that the commandos were issued color photo rosters of some of the passengers - not sure if this was a "hit list" or a "VIP ! Do not kill !" list.

Only one piece of film shot by the passengers on the boats managed to escape the clutches of the Israeli government, and make it to the eyes of the world. This is a 5-minute clip:

The entire 57 minutes here:

http://www.democracynow.org/2010/6/10/exclusive_journalist_smuggles_out_video_of

[IR5FORMUMSIE 850]

Be that as it may - legal issues notwithstanding - I just don't see the IDF shooting "innocent" unarmed passengers, unless their lives were threatened.

You put the word innocent in quotes as if you were using a euphemism for so-called innocent but really armed to the teeth maniac terrorists. The IDF does things that make no sense to anyone, even many Israelis don't understand. If you watch enough propaganda, get brainwashed enough, you'll do anything you are told to. We see that in every military in the world. The IDF wouldn't shoot innocent human beings, but Palestinians and protesters aren't human.

[IR5FORMUMSIE 850]

So what, they just decided to shoot them for fun? BS.

Are you suggesting that the commandos were given specific orders to shoot to kill? It won't be the first time such brutality has been given the green light, remember Abu Ghraib?

[mawilson 2,133]

The IDF does things that make no sense to anyone, even many Israelis don't understand.

Not in my experience.

[IR5FORMUMSIE 850]

Not in my experience.

Fair enough but it gives me pause for concern. Once we lose our humanity, anything, no matter how odious, is possible.

Edited July 20, 2011 by IR5FORMUMSIE

[PalestineMyHeart 1,897]

The culture of impunity.

WATCH: IDF officer pulls loaded gun on Palestinian civilian

Wednesday, July 20 2011|Joseph Dana

This week has seen a flurry of information about the Israeli army’s conduct in the West Bank. Many of my reports on this site concern this upsetting topic. Just when you think that you can’t be surprised again by the violent impunity of Israeli soldiers, a new video emerges from the field, leaving you shocked.

In the above video, you will see an Israeli officer – not a regular soldier but an officer - pull his weapon on a Palestinian subject in the southern West Bank city of Beit Ummar. Shocking in itself, this is not an isolated violation by this particular officer. B’Tselem has released the following information about the incident.

On 18 June ‘11, an army force came to a petrol station at the entrance to the West Bank village of Beit ‘Ummar, which lies north of Hebron, and arrested a youth from the village who works at the station, for allegedly throwing stones. His cousin, Rami Abu Mariah, who was there, intervened and spoke to the force commander to try and stop the arrest. The commander, a First Lieutenant, pushed him back, loaded his weapon and directly it straight into Abu Mariah’s face. Muhammad ‘Awwad, a B’Tselem volunteer who lives in the village, documented the incident on video.

In the videos below, you will see the pattern of his conduct and how it affects the young soldiers under his command. The video below was shot yesterday and depicts the officer drawing his weapon again while threatening others.

In the following video released by B’Tselem this afternoon, you will see the officer commanding his troops during one of the weekly unarmed demonstrations which take place in the same village of Beit Ummar. In this particular protest, soldiers under his command broke the hand of a Palestinian and, well, you can watch how the demonstration unfolded.

If this was another country, one would imagine that this officer would be held responsible for this violent and dangerous behavior. One would think that he would be given leave from his position or even (gasp) reprimanded for his actions. But this is Israel and, most likely, nothing will happen to this officer.

This violent and dangerous behavior is not limited to just a few bad apples, it is part of the system of Israel’s control over the Palestinian people. The culture of impunity that surrounds Israel’s repeated violations of Palestinian dignity is strong enough that officers have no problem performing their crimes in front of the cameras. If the settler MKs in the Knesset have their way, soon this Palestinian might not have the camera used to film these rights violations, and such crimes will simply go undocumented.

For the time being, social media platforms like YouTube allow even the passive international observer of the conflict a window into the behavior of “the most moral army in the world.” One can just imagine the similar such videos which would have emerged from the anti-apartheid struggle in South Africa or the American civil rights movement in the southern United States, had YouTube existed during those struggles. It is for this reason, among others, that the Israeli government is moving so swiftly to limit the operations of NGOs like B’Tselem. The Knesset has already successfully stifled my ability, as a blogger and journalist, to write what I please. There are a multitude of ways to interpret this wave of laws, but perhaps the most straightforward is to understand that Israel is breaking under the pressure of its unsustainable occupation and the cracks are now visible.

http://972mag.com/watchisraeli-officer-draws-his-weapon-on-palestinian-civilian/

[ready4ONE 5,400]

Two then three IDF soldiers at the tail end of a brief clip, nothing preceding, and apparently walking away with noone harmed. What did we see? The Pal who wound up with a gun in his face charged the IDF soldier, grabbed at him, and again the only thing obvious from the beginning of the video is we are at the end of some sort of tense incident. Not a clue what it was about.

Palestinian refused to not only shut up, not only walk away or allow the IDF to walk away, he yelled, followed, chased and then grabbed the IDF soldier earning a gun in the face. From the little we saw I would strongly disagree with your conclusion.

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

Two then three IDF soldiers at the tail end of a brief clip, nothing preceding, and apparently walking away with noone harmed. What did we see? The Pal who wound up with a gun in his face charged the IDF soldier, grabbed at him, and again the only thing obvious from the beginning of the video is we are at the end of some sort of tense incident. Not a clue what it was about.

Palestinian refused to not only shut up, not only walk away or allow the IDF to walk away, he yelled, followed, chased and then grabbed the IDF soldier earning a gun in the face. From the little we saw I would strongly disagree with your conclusion.

Typical: Blame the victim for the crimes of the perpetrator.

[ready4ONE 5,400]

Typical: Blame the victim for the crimes of the perpetrator.

Walk up to any police officer or soldier on patrol anywhere in the world, act like that idiot and see what happens. I was referencing and only watched the first video.

PS there is plenty of video of Palestinians behaving badly too.

[PalestineMyHeart 1,897]

Two then three IDF soldiers at the tail end of a brief clip, nothing preceding, and apparently walking away with noone harmed. What did we see? The Pal who wound up with a gun in his face charged the IDF soldier, grabbed at him, and again the only thing obvious from the beginning of the video is we are at the end of some sort of tense incident. Not a clue what it was about.

Palestinian refused to not only shut up, not only walk away or allow the IDF to walk away, he yelled, followed, chased and then grabbed the IDF soldier earning a gun in the face. From the little we saw I would strongly disagree with your conclusion.

I don't know what video you were watching, but in the video I posted, the Palestinian man never "grabbed" the officer - there was no physical contact at all until the officer grabbed him at :46. The Palestinian man never initiated any physical contact. Watch it again, more carefully.

Also, the article gives the context of the incident, so you should have some "clue."

On 18 June ‘11, an army force came to a petrol station at the entrance to the West Bank village of Beit ‘Ummar, which lies north of Hebron, and arrested a youth from the village who works at the station, for allegedly throwing stones. His cousin, Rami Abu Mariah, who was there, intervened and spoke to the force commander to try and stop the arrest. The commander, a First Lieutenant, pushed him back, loaded his weapon and directly it straight into Abu Mariah’s face.

However, the Palestinian man is clearly wearing a T-shirt, so I guess he dared to "bare arms."

BTW the article is by Joseph Dana, and he is the one who wrote the "conclusion."

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

Walk up to any police officer or soldier on patrol anywhere in the world, act like that idiot and see what happens. I was referencing and only watched the first video.

PS there is plenty of video of Palestinians behaving badly too.

I see. We have to let the bullies win, because they are better armed. Where is that in the UCMJ?

[PalestineMyHeart 1,897]

Walk up to any police officer or soldier on patrol anywhere in the world, act like that idiot and see what happens. I was referencing and only watched the first video.

PS there is plenty of video of Palestinians behaving badly too.

This incident occurred in the occupied West Bank - an occupation which is illegal. That means the IDF has no legal ground to even be there - much less conducting operations to kidnap people. It also means that even if the Palestinian man had attacked and killed the soldier, he would be entirely within his legal rights under internationally-recognized law - as it is an occupied people's right to resist occupying forces by any means necessary.

But he didn't. He merely spoke to (or "yelled" at) the illegal occupation soldier.

Jews resisted the Nazi occupation. Algerians resisted the French occupation. I am sure those soldiers were happy to brutalize any "idiot" who dared to resist as well. But you probably wouldn't try to justify it as you do here.

I am not surprised you didn't watch the other vides. The third one is extremely difficult to stomach.