Israeli Captain is Charged in Shooting of Palestinian Girl - shot 20 times

Military prosecutors charged an army captain today with five separate offenses after accusations by fellow soldiers that he repeatedly shot a 13-year-old Palestinian schoolgirl to make sure she was dead. The case has received widespread attention in Israel, where the military is generally held in high regard, and such serious charges against soldiers are extremely rare. However, Palestinians and human rights groups say alleged abuses by the security forces have seldom been investigated fully during the past four years of fighting. The captain, who has not been identified publicly, was initially cleared of wrongdoing in an internal army investigation into theshooting in the southern Gaza Strip on Oct. 5, when Iman al-Hams was killed as she approached an Israeli military outpost. However, the captain was arrested about three weeks ago as part of a separate inquiry by the military police. The girl's family said she was on her way to school, though she was in an extremely tense area along Gaza's border with Egypt, in an area used only by the Israeli soldiers. Soldiers at the outpost have spoken to the Israeli media, saying the girl was initially shot from some distance while carrying a bag suspected of containing explosives, though it held only books. Afterward, the captain approached the girl as she lay on the ground and shot her multiple times, the soldiers said. Palestinian doctors have said she was hit at least 15 times. The indictment asserts that the captain walked up to the girl, fired two shots at her from close range, then stepped back and fired an additional 10 bullets until his magazine was empty. Later, the captain attempted to persuade soldiers to change their testimony to say that he fired near, but not at the girl, the indictment adds. The soldier has denied the charges, Israel radio reported, citing his lawyer. [more]