JTA & the IDF: Making Men out of Boys in Gaza

Before the attacks in Eilat refocused the mainstream media's attention on the Gaza Strip (negatively of course) Gaza continued to face the regular violence inherent in siege and occupation.

One incident occurring this week involved a Palestinian who was shot 10 times in the chest and head in by Israeli soldiers for entering an Israeli declared 'buffer zone'.

Like most events of this nature, it received little coverage. Palestinians shot for being where the Israelis don't want them to be are a frequent occurrence and do not raise eyebrows anymore. Whether it is Palestinian farmers too close to Israel's 'buffer zone' or Palestinian fishermen too close to the Israeli Navy enforced blockade line, when Palestinians get shot for simply going about there daily lives they are part of the norm and not really newsworthy.

A few outlets did report on the incident, here is Ma'an News Agency's report:

Israeli forces shot dead a Palestinian teenager near the central Gaza Strip city of Deir Al-Balah late Tuesday, medical officials reported.

Medics said the Palestinian, who was not identified, suffered "more than 10" gunshots to the head and upper body after soldiers east of the Al-Masdar area opened fire.

Gaza health ministry official Adham Abu Salmiya told Ma’an that an ambulance crew transferred the teenager's body to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in central Gaza.

Early reports focused on the age of the victim. Above the victim is identified as a teenager whose identity is not known.

After an investigation, the Palestinian Center for Human Rights in Gaza found the following:

[A]t approximately 18:00 on Tuesday, 16 August 2011, Israeli soldiers stationed at the border northeast of Deir al-Balah opened fire at a Palestinian, who was nearly 400 meters from the border. As a result, he was wounded by 10 bullets in his head and chest. He was left wounded without being offered any first aid. After coordination was made with IOF, at approximately 19:20, medical crews were able to retrieve the body, which was then transferred to al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah. After four hours later, the child was identified as Sa'd Abdul Rahim Mahmoud al-Majdalwai, 17, from al-Nussairat refugee camp. He was hit by 10 live bullets mostly to the head. In his testimony to PCHR, the victim's father said that his son had been suffering from a mental disability and a speech impairment.

In short, Israeli soldiers shot a defenseless17 year old mentally disabled refugee boy. If anyone was paying attention, this highlight the cruel nature of occupation and siege.

The JTA had a, well, slightly different take (emphasis mine):

JERUSALEM (JTA) -- Israeli troops shot and killed a Palestinian man who entered a security zone near the Gaza-Israel border.

The man, 22, approached the border on Tuesday night between Israel and Gaza where, according to the Israel Defense Forces, terrorists often plant bombs or attack Israeli patrols. It is not known if he had any weapons or explosives with him.

The shooting death occurred less than a day after Israeli airstrikes hit four targets in the Gaza Strip in retaliation for a rocket attack on Beersheba, killing a Palestinian man. The Israeli Air Force on Tuesday morning also struck a squad of terrorists preparing to fire rockets at Israel, thwarting the attack, the IDF said.

JTA referenced the IDF, added 5 years to the boy's age, made no mention of the absurd number of times he was shot and instead used language to insinuate he was likely a threat to armed soldiers on the other side of a border. Were any Palestinian sources checked with? Does it even matter?

Boys made into men. Victims made into perpetrators. Truth is the first casualty.

Another day in Gaza.

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