| Aic in Spanish | Tue, September 07th |
| Aic in Spanish | Tue, September 07th |
The Israeli government refuses to pay the medical expenses of Emily Henochowicz, a 21-year-old Jewish-American citizen, who lost her eye after being struck by an Israeli military tear gas canister in May of this year.
Emily, who was studying at Jerusalem’s Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design, was struck at the Qalandiyah checkpoint during a peaceful protest following the Israeli attack of the Freedom Flotilla aid convoy on 31 May.
Following the incident Emily was taken to Hadassah Hospital, where she underwent two surgeries. The bones surrounding her eye socket, cheekbone and jawbone are fractured, she lost her left eye, three metal plates were inserted into her head/face, and her jaw was wired shut. She returned home to the U.S. with her father, an Israeli citizen, for further medical procedures.
According to an article in the Israeli news daily Haaretz, upon leaving Hadassah, her father was given a bill for NIS 14,000. Under advice from his lawyer, Michael Sfard, he asked the Defense Ministry to cover the expenses, but officials have refused.
"The canister ricocheted at her after it rebound off a concrete barrier and changed direction - it was not shot directly at her," the ministry said in a statement drafted by lawyer Sharon Zimmerman.
"The IDF maintains that the tear-gas canister bounced off a wall, and that they acted impeccably—but what wall? Where?" Henochowicz said in an interview with the Village Voice newspaper.
And Israeli journalist Avi Issacharoff, who was an eye witness to the shooting, writes today that "I remember that what surprised me was the volley of grenade- fire aimed directly at the demonstrators, not at the sky."
The Defense Ministy’s statement also accuses Henochowicz of putting herself at risk by voluntarily participating in a breach of the peace.
"Either way, even if wounding of my client was the result of negligence and not criminal intent - even then the State of Israel has a moral, ethical and legal obligation to pay for her treatment," Attorney Sfard wrote.
Following the death of Palestinian demonstrator Bassem Abu Rahmah, from the village of Bil’in, in April 2009, as a result of a high velocity tear-gas projectile, the Israeli State Attorney’s Office ordered Israeli Police to review its guidelines for dispersing demonstrators. Tear-gas canisters are meant to be used from a distance as a means of crowd dispersal, not shot directly at demonstrators, though this is common practice.
In March 2009, American Tristan Anderson was shot in the head at close range with a metal high-velocity tear gas canister while taking photos following a demonstration in the village of Ni’lin. The shooting caused severe traumatic brain injury, resulting in the removal of his frontal lobe and blindness in his right eye.
Following a year in a Tel Aviv hospital, 39-year old Tristan has not yet regained the use of the left side of his body and faces a long period of cognitive and physical rehabilitation from his wheelchair. He has recently returned to the United States and only in the last several months has regained his ability to speak.
The Israeli government calls the incident involving Tristan “an act of war”, and has offered no compensation. His parents have brought a civil case against the Israeli military, in part to deal with the lifetime of medical expenses, lost wages and continuing care that Tristan will need as a result of the military action.
Attorney Michael Sfard, also representing the Anderson family, has said, “If a process by which unarmed civilian demonstration is classified by Israel as an ‘act of war,’ then clearly Israel admits that it is at war with civilians. International law identifies the incident as a clear case of human rights abuse. As such, Tristan and his family are undoubtedly entitled to justice and compensation. We will pursue this matter and take the government of Israel to court.”
In Emily’s case, the Defense Ministry states that "From our reports, we know that the Border Police acted in accordance with the law at the violent demonstration at Qalandia, and that the shooting of tear gas canisters at demonstrators was justified. Of course, we regret that Emily Henochowicz was wounded in her eye. But under such circumstances, the Defense Ministry does not cover the expenses of medical treatment."
