Newsweek: Israelis Shooting Dead Suspicious Palestinians

UPDATE

The Newsweek story now includes the following correction, both to the error pointed out by HonestReporting and another inaccuracy not covered by this critique:

Correction: This article originally stated that Israeli forces have shot dead or injured “any Palestinian” suspected of planning an attack against Israelis. It has been amended to reflect that Israeli forces have preemptively arrested the majority of Palestinians suspected of planning an attack.

 

The article originally stated that East Jerusalem Arabs cannot vote in Israeli elections. It has been amended to reflect the fact that they are offered Israeli citizenship but many choose not to for political reasons. That makes them ineligible to vote in the elections.

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In a negative piece in Newsweek‘s Jack Moore focuses on the past several months of Palestinian violence, one statement really stands out:

In response to the attacks on Israelis, the country’s security personnel have been shooting dead or injuring any Palestinian targeting or suspected of planning to target Israeli civilians.

It’s one thing to shoot in self-defense at Palestinians who are carrying out terror attacks. It quite something else to shoot at Palestinians because you simply “suspect” they may be planning to target Israeli civilians.

Newsweek’s inference is a very serious charge and there is no evidence to back it up. While there is a legitimate debate in Israel over the limits of using lethal force against terrorists armed with knives, there is no policy, official or otherwise, of shooting Palestinians simply because somebody thought they might be suspicious.

A request to amend this article has been sent to Newsweek. You can also take action by sending a message through Newsweek’s contact page, remembering to include the hyperlink of the Newsweek article (http://europe.newsweek.com/watch-new-wave-violence-between-israelis-and-palestinians-437153).