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Israel To Pay Compensation for Death of Palestinian American Man at Hands of IDF
Palestinian relatives mourn during the funeral of Omar Abdalmajeed As'ad, 80, who was found dead after being detained and handcuffed during an Israeli raid of a Palestinian village in the West Bank, on Jan. 13, 2022. (Jaafar Ashtiyeh/AFP via Getty Images)

Israel To Pay Compensation for Death of Palestinian American Man at Hands of IDF

Israel’s Defense Ministry will pay 500,000 shekels, or about $141,000, in compensation to the family of a Palestinian American man who died after being held in custody by Israeli soldiers in the West Bank. In exchange, the family will drop its legal claims over the incident, the Israeli public broadcaster Kan first reported over the weekend.

Omar As’ad, 80, was stopped at a checkpoint near Ramallah in February and resisted inspection by members of the Netzah Yehuda Battalion. He was gagged by soldiers so that he did not shout and disrupt a surprise raid on a nearby Palestinian village. He and three other Palestinians were held at a nearby construction site until the end of the raid. The investigation found that the soldiers cut the Palestinians loose but did not check on As’ad’s condition before leaving the site. As’ad was unresponsive when the soldiers left; the soldiers said they thought he was sleeping. He was later discovered dead with the zip tie that had been used to tie up his hands still attached to one of his wrists.

An autopsy conducted under the direction of the Palestinian Authority found that As’ad suffered a stress-induced heart attack. The Israel Defense Forces called the death a “clear lapse of moral judgment” and contrary to the spirit and values ​​of the IDF. The company commander was reprimanded, and the fighters involved in detaining As’ad were removed from combat.

Such compensation is unusual for the IDF; the incident generated an angry response from the United States as well as pressure for a thorough investigation since As’ad was a US citizen.

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