Soldier fatally shooting man who was no longer a threat is murder

The brutal shooting dead of a wounded, helpless young Palestinian man, Abed al-Fattah Yusri al-Sharif, 21, by an Israeli soldier was captured on video last week, providing stark visual evidence of Israel’s policy of extrajudicial executions.

UN special rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions Christof Heyns, said: “Whatever legal regime one applies to the case, shooting someone who is no longer a threat is murder. It is furthermore troublesome that this was done to no apparent alarm to the other soldiers who were nearby.”

The soldier in question has had his charge downgraded from murder to manslaughter and has been defended by members of the Knesset, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.