Israeli court extends remand of soldier in al-Khalil shooting

An Israeli military court has extended the remand in custody of a soldier who recently killed an already-subdued Palestinian execution-style in the West Bank.

The Israeli trooper shot at the head of Abed al-Fatah al-Sharif, who was already lying wounded by Israeli fire on the ground after an alleged stabbing attack in the West Bank city of al-Khalil (Hebron) on March 24. Another Palestinian filmed the scene and released it through an Israeli human rights group.

The 19-year-old Israeli soldier, whose identity has not been made clear, appeared in court on Tuesday over a motion filed by prosecutors demanding the extension of his remand until April 7. The judge decided that the soldier must be held in custody only until Thursday.

It is not immediately clear what charges the prosecution has officially pressed against the Israeli soldier.

Israelis protested outside the court in support of the soldier, calling for his release despite his clear act of murder.

A number of Israeli politicians have also defended the soldier and claimed that he was being publicly “lynched” and would not receive a fair trial. Former Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman also attended the court to support the soldier.

Another footage, released by Israeli paper Haaretz, shows the soldier being approached and greeted after the killing by Baruch Meir Marzel, a well-known far-right Israeli-American politician, and the trooper patting him on the arm in response.

Israeli settlers have threatened to torch down the house of Imad Abu Shamsiyyeh, the Palestinian who filmed the atrocity.

On Monday, the Palestinian government asked the UN to launch an investigation into the murder. Saeb Erekat, the secretary general of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), said that Israel has so far failed to “serve justice” in their investigations and instead “rewarded with impunity.”

Tensions have heightened in the occupied territories since August 2015, when Israel imposed restrictions on the entry of Palestinian worshipers into the al-Aqsa Mosque compound in East al-Quds (Jerusalem).

Some 208 Palestinians, including children and women, have lost their lives at the hands of Israeli forces since the beginning of last October. Around 29 Israelis have also been killed during this period.

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