An Israeli army officer who fired the entire magazine of his automatic rifle into a 13-year-old Palestinian girl and then said he would have done the same even if she had been three years old was acquitted on all charges by a military court yesterday.
After reading the article, it is as bad as it sounds. The autopsy leaves little to the imagination:
Capt R claimed that he had not fired the shots at the girl but near her. However, Dr Mohammed al-Hams, who inspected the child’s body at Rafah hospital, counted numerous wounds. “She has at least 17 bullets in several parts of the body, all along the chest, hands, arms, legs,” he told the Guardian shortly afterwards. “The bullets were large and shot from a close distance. The most serious injuries were to her head. She had three bullets in the head. One bullet was shot from the right side of the face beside the ear. It had a big impact on the whole face.”
The girl wandered into a secured area with a bookbag, but later dropped the bookbag and ran away trying to hide behind an embankment. Her bag was hit by several shots, tending to confirm that it didn’t contain an explosive device. After running to the embankment, away from the army post, she was shot by IDF soldiers. The Commander, referred to as “Captain R,” then approached the girl’s body to “confirm the kill,” and emptied his assault rifle into her body. It appears that no incendiary device or bomb was ever discovered.
I can think of few ways for the Israeli government to ensure more frequent threats to their security in the future than to execute border security in this manner. These are the sort of incidents that radicalize the Palestinian population. Imagine the outrage that the Palestinian community must feel over this incident. Stories like this are an excellent recruiting tool for Hamas and various other groups whose goal is the destruction of Israel.
I recognize that IDF soldiers are in a precarious position in situations like this. A moment’s hesitation could mean the difference between staying alive and ending up in a body bag. But here, it appears that this girl’s death was completely unnecessary under any reasonably likely version of the facts. Emptying assault rifles into 13-year old girls, and then proudly proclaiming that you’d do the same to a 3-year old, is quite possibly the worst thing I think that an IDF soldier could say, particularly in a world where Israel has enemies who will utilize this event to mobilize even more disaffected & outraged individuals against Israel. Anybody who is truly pro-Israel should oppose this sort of ruthless security policy. It only endangers the lives of the very citizens it is meant to protect.
(via letterstomycountry)
The entire IDF is unnecessary. The occupation of Palestine by Europeans and Americans is unnecessary.
(via treatquestion)
(via warcrimenancydrew)
Ten-year-old Nadia, whose mother and father were killed in a US drone strike on their house. (via Columbia Human Rights Clinic and the Center for Civilians in Conflict: Civilian Impact of Drones)
Remember Malala, but remember Nadia too. Ten years old. A drone struck her home killing her parents. In other words, remember the violence of the Taliban, but remember the violence of the American President, too.
(via warcrimenancydrew)
Ten rape prevention tips:
1. Don’t put drugs in
women’speople’s drinks.2. When you see a
womanperson walking by herself, leaveherthem alone.3. If you pull over to help a woman whose car has broken down, remember not to rape her.
4. If you are in an elevator and
a womansomeone gets in, don’t rapeherthem.5. When you encounter
a womansomeone who is asleep, the safest course of action is to not rapeherthem.6. Never creep into
a woman’ssomeone’s home through an unlocked door or window, or spring out atherthem from between parked cars, or rapeherthem.7. Remember, people go to the laundry room to do their laundry. Do not attempt to molest someone who is alone in a laundry room.
8. Use the Buddy System! If it is inconvenient for you to stop yourself from raping
womenpeople, ask a trusted friend to accompany you at all times.9. Carry a rape whistle. If you find that you are about to rape someone, blow the whistle until someone comes to stop you.
10. Don’t forget: Honesty is the best policy. When asking
a womanperson out on a date, don’t pretend that you are interested inherthem as a person; tellherthem straight up that you expect to be rapingherthem later. If you don’t communicate your intentions, thewomanperson may take it as a sign that you do not plan to rapeherthem.Always reblog
Let’s see how many rapists see this.
…
None.
Fixed the language. Rape happens across all genders and orientations, and is under-reported within the GLBTQ community as well as by cis women. Predators exist, no matter what flag you’re flying.
(Source: coerulescens, via fuckyeahfeminists)
42166 Mail Order Bride Company President Lobbying To Weaken Protections For Abused Immigrants
This is really fucking sick.
A top official at an anti-domestic violence advocacy group that has been encouraging the House GOP to roll back protections for immigrant victims in the Violence Against Women Act (or VAWA) is the founder of a controversial international matchmaking company, domestic violence workers warned lawmakers on Monday night.
The advocacy group, Stop Abusive and Violent Environments, or SAVE, has been lobbying the House of Representatives to include a “reform to curb VAWA immigration fraud” in its version of the bill. The GOP version of the bill does that by removing confidentiality protections for immigrant victims of abuse and forcing them to tell their alleged abusive husbands that they’re applying for protected immigrant status. It also removes an avenue through whih immigrant victims can achieve permanent citizenship.
An official of SAVE has a major financial interest in reducing immigrant protections: Its treasurer, Natasha Spivack, started international “marriage service” Encounters International in 1993 with the aim of arranging marriages between U.S. men and Russian women. “The Woman Of Your Dreams Just May Have A Russian Accent,” states the company’s website.
One of the Russian brides matched by Encounters International sued the firm, claiming that she was beaten by her American husband, that the company failed to properly screen candidates and neglected to tell her about a law allowing immigrants to escape abusive marriages without fear of automatic deportation. A jury decided in favor of the Russian bride and awarded her $434,000 in compensatory and punitive damages. The case was affirmed upon appeal.
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