The new video – released by B’Tselem, the Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories – shows the soldier behind his commander as the two walk away from the body of Abed al-Fattah al-Sharif, who was shot on Thursday.
The soldier then shakes hands and pats on the back far-right activist Baruch Marzel, the former leader of the outlawed Kach party, which has been labeled a terrorist group by the US, EU and Israel.
The footage isn’t the first recorded incident of a friendly encounter between the two; photos taken by foreign press agencies have shown the soldier smiling alongside Marzel.
Responding to reports of a camaraderie between the soldier – whose name remains under a court-issued gag order – and Marzel, the soldier’s family was quoted by Haaretz as saying: “We are not commenting on rumors of any kind that are meant to continue to tarnish the image of an outstanding IDF fighter.”
They went on to call the reports “meaningless gossip which has no operational link to the incident,” pointing the finger directly at Haaretz.
The soldier has come under fire for shooting al-Sharif – who had reportedly been injured in retaliation for stabbing an IDF soldier – in Hebron on Thursday. The Palestinian was lying on the ground immobilized when the soldier shot him in the head. https://www.rt.com
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