Israel court acquits officer charged with killing autistic Palestinian

An Israeli court has acquitted a police officer charged with reckless homicide in the deadly shooting of an autistic Palestinian man in occupied East al-Quds in 2020.

The court on Thursday said the officer was acting in “self-defense” when he shot and killed 32-year-old Eyad al-Hallaq on May 30 that year.

The officer “made an honest mistake thinking he was dealing with an armed assailant who posed a real danger,” the court said, noting he had expressed “remorse” for his fatal error.

The court said the officer, whose name has not been made public, was acting in “good faith” when he shot Hallaq.

The officer was charged in June 2021 after authorities said the previous October he had not followed police rules for opening fire and Hallaq had “posed no danger to police or civilians at the scene.”

Hallaq was shot while walking in the Old City of East al-Quds. His family had said their son had the mental age of an eight-year-old, and witnesses said he panicked after being shouted at by police.

The Hallaq family has long criticized Israel's investigation into the killing. After the decision was handed down, Hallaq's mother, Rana, exited the courtroom crying. “My son is now in the grave and his killer is relaxing and going out and having a good time, and this is a particular injustice.”

“(Eyad) created a special atmosphere within the family,” she said, sitting beside portraits or her son. “I was screaming hysterically in court after the decision. My husband and I, and his two sisters had a huge breakdown,” Rana said. “Today I felt that he was killed again.”

She described her son as “obedient,” and said he was able to understand and interact with those around him, but was “terrified” when four Israeli police officers ran behind him.

Protesters, Israeli police clash at rally over killing of autistic Palestinian

Several protesters and Israeli security forces clashed in West Jerusalem al-Quds during a rally over the death of a 32 year-old autistic Palestinian man who was killed by Israeli police.

“Our lives have been turned upside down since Eyad’s death,” Rana said. “I sleep in his room every day and don’t go out and stare at his photo all day. He was the soul of the house for me and his two sisters.”

At the time, Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas called Hallaq’s death a “war crime” and an “execution.”

His funeral drew thousands of mourners, while online hashtag #PalestinianLivesMatter echoed the fury of mass protests against police violence and racism in the United States.

Palestinian demonstrators back then organized a protest outside the UN building in Gaza City in support of both Hallaq and George Floyd – an unarmed black man who died after a white policeman knelt on his neck during an arrest in the US.

Human rights groups accuse Israeli forces of killing Palestinians under questionable circumstances. They say Israel poorly, if ever, prosecutes those responsible in cases of wrongdoing. Investigations often end with no charges or lenient sentences, and in many cases, witnesses are not even summoned for questioning.

Rights advocacy groups have documented several cases of Israeli soldiers gunning down peaceful Palestinian protesters across the occupied territories.

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