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Last update - 00:00 17/04/2008
Rights group: IDF must ban shell that killed cameraman in Gaza
By Haaretz Service
Tags: B'Tselem, Flechette shells 

An investigation into the death of a Palestinian cameraman who was killed Wednesday in the Gaza Strip revealed that he had been hit by a Flechette shell fired from an Israel Defense Forces tank, prompting the human rights group B'Tselem to reiterate their demand to discontinue the use of this fatal type of munition.

The Flechette shell explodes in the air and releases thousands of metal darts which disperse in a conical arch three hundred meters long and some ninety meters wide. The use of this type of shell increases the likelihood that someone other than the target will be hit by the shell's darts, thus endangering innocent civilians.

Fadel Shana, 23, was working for the news agency Reuters filming Israeli tanks when he was killed. Two other Palestinian civilians were also killed in the same incident.
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In a statement, B'Tselem demanded Thursday that the Military Advocate General "immediately issue instructions to suspend the use of this deplorable form of munition in the Gaza Strip, and launch a criminal investigation into the circumstances surrounding the incident." The human rights organization maintains that over the past seven years, at least 18 Palestinians were killed by Flechette shells in the Gaza Strip, and at least 11 of them were civilians.

Israel has drawn harsh criticism in the past over its determination to continue using Flechette shells. These shells have been denounced globally due to their dangerously wide range.

In October 2002, human rights groups Physicians for Human Rights-Israel and the Palestinian Center for Human rights petitioned the High Court of Justice to forbid the IDF from using Flechette shells against Palestinian targets. The court rejected the petition and permitted the shells' continued use.

Palestinian doctors at Gaza's Shifa hospital displayed X-rays of Shana's body, clearly demonstrating the presence of the small metal darts, like those released by the Flechette shells. Some of the darts were lodged in the cameraman's flak jacket, which carried the recognized Press symbols.

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      1.   And at the same time the terrorists should stop targeting 22:43  |  Murray of Montreal 17/04/08
      2.   I had a much better opinion of Israel... 22:49  |  Aphemia 17/04/08
      3.   ? 23:19  |  DBen 17/04/08
      4.   KEEP THE GOOD WORK, IDF !!! 23:40  |  BRAZILIAN JEW 17/04/08
      5.   These shells should be replaced 23:59  |  Genuine Tosefta 17/04/08
      6.   These shells should be replaced 23:59  |  Genuine Tosefta 17/04/08
      7.   These shells should be replaced 00:00  |  Genuine Tosefta 18/04/08
      8.   #1 00:00  |  GS 18/04/08
      9.   small metal darts 00:03  |  Genuine Tosefta 18/04/08
      10.   I thought Flechette shells had been banned 00:13  |  Silvienne 18/04/08
      11.   Prove it 00:13  |  Gili 18/04/08
      12.   When the rest of the world bans Flechettes 00:24  |  * BEN JABO 18/04/08
      13.   No such thing as an Arab "civilian" 00:43  |  spade 18/04/08
      14.   More transparent lies from phony "rights" group 01:02  |  Dr. L. Brnd 18/04/08
      15.   More transparent lies from phony "rights" group 01:03  |  Dr. L. Brnd 18/04/08
      16.   KEEP THE GOOD WORK, IDF! 01:46  |  MatzeMel 18/04/08
      17.   Not all Israelis support war crimes 01:57  |  Yesh Gvul 18/04/08
      18.   Banning tank shells 02:06  |  SC 18/04/08
      19.   #1 I believe the word you are looking for is "indiscriminate" 02:21  |  Johnboy 18/04/08
      20.   Don`t Start WWIII 03:02  |  Luigi_Aronson 18/04/08
      21.   to #2 Genuine Tosefta, still you are showing your ugly face 03:07  |  Zaki 18/04/08
      22.   What a crock 03:17  |  Sabra 18/04/08
      23.   Hams doesnt like these 03:21  |  Sabra 18/04/08
      24.   Against civilians 03:36  |  jjvanka 18/04/08
      25.   to Genuine Tosefta 03:49  |  housam 18/04/08
      26.   Enough hypocrisy 03:53  |  MR 18/04/08
      27.   #1: DBen, I know can you believe these guys are serious 04:26  |  Doc Holliday 18/04/08
      28.   MR (#8) 05:19  |  jjvanka 18/04/08
      29.   cluster bombs/flechette shells 05:37  |  bri 18/04/08
      30.   Mission accomplished, my exact intent is to get under your skin 05:56  |  Genuine Tosefta 18/04/08
      31.   Mission accomplished, my exact intent is to get under your skin 05:57  |  Genuine Tosefta 18/04/08
      32.   #5, Zaki--yes, Genuine Tosefta is an ugly sight.... 05:58  |  Silvienne 18/04/08
      33.   280 million innocent souls murdered by Arabs is not pretty 06:00  |  Genuine Tosefta 18/04/08
      34.   I thought Flechette shells had been banned 13:44  |  MaryRose 18/04/08
      35.   # 33 tosefta 17:13  |  Axel 18/04/08
      36.   # 34 maryrose 20:02  |  Axel 18/04/08
      37.   anti-Israel provocations occur every week at bilin; rioters... 22:26  |  dante 18/04/08
      38.   #34, MaryRose--such a superior air!! 00:51  |  Silvienne 19/04/08
      39.   Tank shell 02:09  |  non ofyour bis 19/04/08
      40.   #Ben Jabo. Flechette Shells. Legal are they! 04:33  |  Maureen Ann 19/04/08
      41.   #36, Axel... 09:06  |  Silvienne 19/04/08
      42.   yours is the transparent lie, l. brnd 13:07  |  eric 19/04/08
      43.   No such thing as an Arab civilian 16:09  |  Detlef 19/04/08
      44.   Ban Flechettes,use cream puffs instead 17:28  |  YSL 19/04/08
      45.   to YSL 19:01  |  basel 19/04/08
      46.   WAR IS HELL! ISRAEL SEEKS PEACE 19:39  |  Bernard Silver 19/04/08
      47.   Actually, the use of flachettes is limited to particular scenario 22:33  |  jack 19/04/08
      48.   IDF and the use of Flechettes against terrorists 23:52  |  Dr. Moises Asis 19/04/08
      49.   #33 07:10  |  toto 20/04/08
      50.   to no 3 toseftha 10:15  |  raj 20/04/08
      51.   kassam 10:36  |  ed 20/04/08
      52.   # 48 to dr. asis regardng arms proposal 12:05  |  eric 20/04/08
      53.   No militants in the area when IDF murdered those civilians 18:08  |  anti-racist 20/04/08
      54.   IDF=terrorists, terrorists use deplorable means to kill civilians 18:11  |  anti-racist 20/04/08
      55.   ISRAELI dissproportioality 09:35  |  DANNY 19/01/09
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