Image of Palestinian strapped to Israeli security vehicle sparks outrage
Israeli military promises investigation after forces accused of using man as a 'human shield'
Alex MacDonald
Published date: 23 June 2024 | 15:44 BST
An image of a wounded Palestinian man strapped to an Israeli military vehicle has sparked outrage, with many accusing the military of using him as a "human shield".
Social media footage of the man, identified by medics at 24-year-old Mujahid Raed Abbadi, went viral on Saturday after the incident.
Abbadi can be seen strapped horizontally to the bonnet of a military jeep as it passes through a narrow alley in the West Bank city of Jenin.
On Sunday, the Israeli military said it was investigating the incident, which took place during a "counterterrorism operation" to arrest wanted suspects in the area of Wadi Burqin, near Jenin.
"In violation of orders and standard operating procedures, the suspect was taken by the forces while tied on top of a vehicle," it said, adding that he was later transferred to the Palestinian Red Crescent for treatment.
"The conduct of the forces in the video of the incident does not conform to the values of the IDF [military] - the incident will be investigated and dealt with accordingly."
Francesca Albanese, the United Nations special rapporteur on the rights situation in the Palestinian territories, said the Israelis had been using Abbadi as a human shield.
"#HumanShielding in action", Albanese wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
Abbadi told AFP, while recovering in hospital, that he was hit and wounded as he stepped out of his uncle's house in Jabriyat, a Jenin neighbourhood.
"I tried to withdraw and get inside the house, but they started shooting", hitting him in the hand.
"When they [the soldiers] arrived, they stomped on my head and hit my face, my injured leg and hand," Abbadi said. "They were laughing and playing while they hit me."
He said the Israeli soldiers lifted him and threw him on the ground before they tied him to the bonnet of the jeep, which left him with "burns on his back from neck to lower back" according to a doctor at Ibn Sina hospital.
A number of social media users criticised the reporting of the incident, noting that many outlets in the past reported on Israeli claims that Hamas used human shields during attacks on the Gaza Strip.
