By Dr. Dalal Iriqat for The Palestine Observer.
I am forever deeply troubled by the images of Khader Adnan, Nasser Abu Hmaid, Israeli police intruding into the funeral procession of Palestinian-American Shireen Abu Akleh, and engraved images of the execution of my own cousin Ahmad Erekat on the 23rd June 2020.
Every family deserves to lay their loved ones to rest in a dignified and unimpeded manner. Three years since the murder of Ahmad, here are the details of the execution of my cousin, 26 years then Ahmad.
He was killed in cold blood at the checkpoint between Jerusalem and Bethlehem on his sister’s wedding day. His car crashed accidentally into the checkpoint. The cameras documented, Ahmad got out of the car and raised his hands high in the air as a sign of innocence.
The military claimed that it was an intentional terror attack, but produced no evidence that the crash was not an accident. One soldier was apparently reported to be hit, however he got up immediately. Meanwhile two other armed soldiers proceeded to shoot my innocent cousin. He raised his arms and fell to the ground.
Research organisation based in London, Forensic Architecture, was asked by our family to investigate the matter. The investigation wrote: ‘According to the Israeli army’s open-fire regulations, live fire may only be used in a last resort if there is ‘life-threatening danger.’ Our analysis contradicts the army’s claim, showing that Ahmad did not pose any immediate threat.’
From footage, Ahmad was seen to be shot 6 times within 2 seconds by the armed Israeli soldiers. ‘The last 3 shots were fired when Ahmad was already on the ground,’ the investigation continued.
Medical negligence and restrictions of medics was on full display when a Palestinian ambulance arrived but was denied access by the Israeli army. An Israeli ambulance previously arrived, but only took the supposedly injured Israeli soldier. It is summarized in the statement the investigation contained: ‘The practice of denying medical care is an act of ‘killing by time’.’
One and a half hours after the shooting, slain Ahmad was fully undressed by the Israeli army at the site. Only later was he taken by an Israeli ambulance. But the injustice doesn’t end here, my cousin’s body was denied return to us for proper burial.
Immediately, after the Israelis kept his body hostage, we formed a family team, we wrote, we exerted every effort and available pressure, we followed up by all means. We brought his case to the United Nations, the Human Rights Council and legal action organizations.
The cameras documented the crime, Forensic Architecture submitted a detailed study report with pictures, angles and coordinates, second by second, that studied the car’s speed and dropped it practically and psychologically on the driver’s intentions to prove the deliberate killing by the occupation forces. But the occupation courts proved useless, providing anything but justice.
We resorted to the pen, to international law, to diplomacy, to popular marches, to the courts, to international campaigns, to parliamentarians, we knocked on all doors of the world and humanity, and despite all that, the body of Ahmad is still being held to this date. Three years later.
Yes, until this moment, Ahmad’s body is still withheld in Israeli refrigerators, probably in the labs of Tel Aviv university, details of ugly truth which the Israelis will never communicate. I am writing today to send a message that we will not surrender. We will not tire. We will not give up.
We are facing an unjust prolonged military occupation, a criminal ‘army’ who kill the youth of Palestine and are trying to kill the word of truth.
Shireen’s soul is comforted looking upon us from heaven trusting that her peers and professional friends will continue to show/tell the truth, to document the image and expose the criminal true face of the occupation.
No one has the right to decide the end of one’s life but God, and therefore we are facing a crime against humanity with full dimensions and the direct suspect is the Israeli occupation soldiers.
The Israeli occupier masters spinning facts, distorting realities, changing narrative and dispersing the masses. This right of Ahmad and Shireen and all the innocent martyrs is a duty on all of us, justice shall surely prevail.
The sad story doesn’t end with Ahmad’s martyrdom but the painful reality that my uncle (Ahmad’s father and his wife) along with families of more than 120 martyrs whose bodies are withheld, those parents gave up on demanding justice, they don’t ask to hold the Israeli criminals accountable, their one and only ask is to kiss their children goodbye and bury their bodies with dignity.
Let alone our differences, our colours and ideological backgrounds, this fact shall not be tolerated by any human being in 2023.
Not only did Israel fail to release an autopsy, they also did not open an investigation. First my cousin was murdered, and this can never be justified, then his body was confiscated.
But the martyr Ahmad is not alone. He is one of dozens of Palestinians whose bodies have been confiscated from their families—a practice of collective punishment whilst hard-hearted world leaders continue to watch.
On this blessed Friday we continue to remember our beautiful cousin who was unlawfully killed whilst running errands for his sister’s wedding that day. I pray that Ahmad and all the other victims of Israeli injustice are reunited with their families for a proper farewell, because every human has a right to be buried.
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Dalal Iriqat, PhD, is an assistant professor at the Arab American University in Jenin.
She has also been a columnist at the Al-Quds Newspaper since 2016.
The Palestine Observer 