Last update - 00:00 21/09/2006
2 IDF soldiers charged with abusing civilians at checkpoint
By Amos Harel, Haaretz Correspondent and Haaretz Service
An Israel Defense Forces court on Thursday charged two IDF soldiers suspected of abusing two Palestinians last month at a checkpoint near Nablus.
The soldiers are accused of abuse, aggravated assault, looting, and disruption of legal proceedings.
The charges were brought to IDF Central Command's Prosecution Office by the human rights organization, B'Tselem, after Tha'ir Muhsen, a 27-year-old Palestinian man from a village near Nablus, lodged a complaint with the group saying the soldiers had beaten him and stolen his money.
As a result of numerous other complaints presented to B'Telem, the IDF's military investigative committee is currently probing eight different cases of abuse by soldiers against Palestinian civilians in the West Bank.
In the current case, Muhsen said the soldiers severely beat him, stole his money and tore his pants and identification card. Following the alleged assault, Muhsen required medical treatment.
"The soldier ran towards me and kicked me in the head. He did this a few times, as if my head were a ball in a game. Then the officer grabbed my head, slammed it into the armored vehicle and went away," Muhsen said, according to the B'Tselem Website.
Muhsen said the soldiers later attacked another Palestinian at the same checkpoint. According to the second Palestinian's testimony, the soldiers beat him with their fists and a stick and stole NIS 1,000 from his wallet, as well as his cellular phone, with which they photographed themselves. He also required medical treatment after the alleged attack.
The main piece of evidence in the case is the recording, obtained by military police investigators, of a phone call made by one of the suspects, in which he describes the second assault.
In the recording the soldier describes how one of the soldiers, "took a wooden stick," and told the Palestinian, "I'll bust open your head," after which he proceeded to beat the man who was pleading for his life until blood gushed from his head.
According to B'Tselem, the eight incidents under investigation occurred in July and August of this year in the northern West Bank, mainly between Nablus and Tul Karm. According to the the group, a marked rise in incidents occurred after the war broke out in Lebanon on July 12.