Last update - 02:50 22/12/2006
Father of Palestinian girl shot by IDF refused release to mourn her death
By Nir Hasson
The father of a 14-year-old girl shot dead by Israel Defense Forces on Tuesday will not be permitted to take part in the traditional mourning ritual in Tul Karm.
The Tel Aviv District Court yesterday rejected Nasser Abd al-Qadr's request to be released from custody to attend the mourning. He is being held for entering Israel illegally. His request to attend his daughter's funeral had also been refused.
Abd al-Qadr appealed the court's decision to the Supreme Court, which decided later yesterday to postpone the debate to Monday - after the three days of traditional mourning end.
Abd al-Qadr was arrested some two months ago in Kalansua on suspicion of stealing a car, entering Israel illegally and obstructing a policeman in the course of his duty. He denies stealing the car and has not seen his family since his incarceration.
On Tuesday he learned that his daughter Doaa had been shot by an IDF soldier. The IDF has admitted that the child was shot by mistake, due to the shooter's faulty judgment. Both the soldier and his commander have been suspended pending investigation.
Abd al-Qadr asked to attend his daughter's funeral, but the request was delayed and finally reached the district court five minutes before the funeral was to take place.
Judge Zvi Gurfinkel said he could not discuss the petition without the prosecution's comment and, by then, the funeral would be over. He therefore refrained from issuing the permission himself, writing "this does not prevent the petitioner from asking the lock-up commander to permit him to take part in his daughter's funeral with a police escort."
Abd al-Qadr's attorney Rami Otman blasted the decision. "You'd think the judge lived in The Netherlands. He should know that Israeli policemen cannot escort a prisoner to a funeral in the Tul Karm of a girl who was killed by the IDF," he said.
Yesterday morning Abd al-Qadr submitted another request, to release him at least for the mourning days.
The prosecution asked the court to deny the request for procedural reasons and claimed that Abd al-Qadr could escape. The court accepted this argument.
Abd al-Qadr sounded desperate in the Abu Kabir lock-up yesterday. "What is my crime? I entered [Israel] to look for work, I don't have a shekel to bring home to my children. All I wanted was to bring them bread. I'm willing to go hungry a month, but the children must eat," he said.
He said he would not flee, as this would make him a fugitive and he would have to keep running all his life. "I also have Israeli friends who can vouch for me. Please. All I have left is my three children. I just want to be with them a little now," he said.
Abd al-Qadr received the news of his daughter's death from his wife, on the telephone. "We live very close to the separation barrier. It was a bright day, she went for a walk with her 10-year-old friend. They say the soldier thought she was a terrorist. How is that possible? She's 1.20 meters tall," he said.
Abd al-Qadr has not seen a single member of his family since his arrest two months ago. "Anyone who has children can understand. If you're three days away from them you feel bad, so how would you feel if you lose a child and don't even see her? Those judges probably don't have children, they have no heart, they have a stone instead," he said.
Otman said "the system is acting as though his daughter's killing is a matter of routine. So what, a child was killed, that's no reason to change status and release people." He said that during the debate the judge asked him "what clause do you want to release him on?"
"I said to her - no clause, only humanitarian grounds. You know your daughter is being buried and you're locked up in a cell. It's enough to commit suicide," he said.