In an unsurprising move, the Police Investigations Department (Mahash) and the Israeli Attorney General’s office have closed the investigation file concerning the police officers involved in the killing of martyr Ahmad Hijazi, a resident of the city of Tamra, who was shot dead by the police on February 2, 2021. This crime resulted in the death of two young men and the injury of two others.

At Mizan Center for Human Rights, we reaffirm our categorical rejection of the claims that justify the police’s easy use of deadly force under the pretext of protecting themselves and those around them. The justification that the officers “met the conditions for self-defense” and that Ahmad Hijazi “was wanted under the circumstances of the case” is baseless.

Mizan believes that the killing of martyr Ahmad Hijazi is part of how Israeli authorities handle Arab citizens within Palestine 1948 in an antagonistic manner. It is characterized by a reckless trigger-happiness by police officers and Israeli security guards when confronting Arab citizens in the country, with no justification other than suspicion that the Arab person “poses a threat” or is believed to be planning something. This is particularly concerning given that, since the year 2000, more than 60 Arabs have been killed in cold blood, primarily due to nationalist and racist motives, with their lives devalued in the context of the prevailing climate of racism towards Arabs in the country.

The closure of the investigation file without holding those responsible for the killing of Ahmad Hijazi accountable once again confirms that the lightness of the security and police forces’ fingers on the trigger, when it comes to anything Arab, is protected and fully supported by various Israeli official bodies. These entities have worked to close the files of those accused of murder and have failed to apply the law equally in a state that claims to be the “only democracy” in the Middle East. Even Israeli courts have closed the majority of these files.

Mizan Center for Human Rights considers field executions by Israeli forces, under official political and legal cover, as a flagrant violation of international and humanitarian laws, carried out without accountability or punishment, as if the killing of an Arab on the basis of nationalism and racism is an act that does not warrant punishment.

Mizan stresses the necessity of continuing to pursue the murderers at all levels until justice is served and to deter the recurrence of cold-blooded killings of our youth. This is particularly urgent given the belief that there were numerous flaws in the investigation conducted by Mahash, according to Attorney Muhammad Subhi Jabarin, the lawyer for the family of martyr Ahmad Hijazi.

Mizan Center for Human Rights – Nazareth
Monday, February 21, 2022