Death of Omar Assad

Omar Assad (aka Omar As'ad) was an 80-year-old Palestinian-American man who died on 12 January 2022 in the custody of Israeli forces. He was detained by troops from the Netzah Yehuda Battalion at a checkpoint at the village of Jilijliya, north of Ramallah. He was handcuffed, gagged and forced to lie on his stomach for between 20 minutes and an hour, dying from a stress-induced cardiac arrest.[1][2] U.S. State Department spokesman Ned Price said U.S. officials requested "clarification" of events from Israel, saying "We support a thorough investigation into the circumstances." The Israeli authorities announced an investigation. [3][4] An army report called the incident a "moral failure and poor decision-making."[5][6]

Subsequently, the U.S. State Department showed particular interest in the Netzah Yehuda battalion. Hady Amr, the administration's point person on Israel-Palestine, visited Assad's family and the U.S. Embassy in Israel was asked to prepare a report on the battalion.[7][3]

On 9 October, Israel's defense ministry said it would pay the family of the deceased 500,000 shekels (US$141,000)[8] On 16 October, the family of the deceased said they rejected compensation offered in return for dismissing a lawsuit they had submitted before US and Israeli courts.[9]

On 10 November 2022, the Israeli military's legal authority said it is preparing to indict two officers, one who commanded the force at the checkpoint and another in charge of guarding detainees.[10] At the end of November, Israel announced that the Netzah Yehuda battalion would be reassigned from the West Bank but denied that the move related to controversial incidents over the past year including the death of Assad.[11]

In June 2023, the Israeli military announced that soldiers involved in the detention of Omar Assad would be punished but not charged. The military advocate general said there will be no criminal prosecution because a military medic found it impossible to determine that Omar Assad's death was caused specifically by the soldiers' conduct.[12][13][14] Following the Israeli announcement, the United States said that it is seeking more information from the Israeli government about the decision.[15]

See also

References
  1. Abdulrahim, Raja (January 20, 2022). "Palestinian American Died Handcuffed in Israeli Custody, Witnesses Say" – via NYTimes.com.
  2. "Autopsy finds Palestinian American man died of heart attack after being bound and gagged by Israeli soldiers". The Washington Post. 2022-01-26. Archived from the original on 2023-03-22.
  3. "U.S. Examining Allegations Against Israel's Orthodox West Bank Battalion" – via Haaretz.
  4. "Elderly Palestinian-American dies after Israeli soldiers detain him in West Bank". The Washington Post. 2022-01-12. Retrieved 2022-06-11.
  5. "Death of 80-year-old Palestinian Was 'Moral Lapse,' Israeli Military Report Says" – via Haaretz.
  6. "Israel punishes officers in death of Palestinian-American". AP NEWS. February 1, 2022.
  7. "Their Palestinian-American Father Was Left to Die by Israeli Soldiers. Now They Seek Justice" – via Haaretz.
  8. "Israel to pay family of dead Palestinian American detainee". www.aljazeera.com.
  9. "Family of elderly who died in Israeli detention reject compensation". WAFA.
  10. "Israel readies indictments in death of Palestinian-American". AP NEWS. November 10, 2022.
  11. Fabian, Emanuel. "Religious unit with reputation of rights abuses to exit West Bank for first time". www.timesofisrael.com.
  12. "Israeli troops will not face criminal charges over Palestinian-American's death". BBC.
  13. "Israeli soldiers will not face criminal charges in death of elderly Palestinian-American". AP NEWS. June 13, 2023.
  14. "Israeli Soldiers Who Bound, Gagged 80-year-old Palestinian American Before He Died Won't Be Charged" – via Haaretz.
  15. "U.S. Seeks Info From Israel After Soldiers Involved in Elderly Palestinian-American's Death Evade Criminal Charges" – via Haaretz.
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