Palestinian Doctor Wants Justice From Israel’s Supreme Court for Daughters Killed in Gaza (VIDEO REPORT)
Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish’s three daughters and a niece were killed in January 2009 when his house in Gaza was struck by Israeli tank fire
Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish, right, sits beside his attorney Hussein Abu Hussein inside the court room in Israel’s Supreme Court in Jerusalem at the start of a hearing on his civil lawsuit against the State of Israel over the deaths of his three daughters and his niece, in January 2009 when his house in Gaza was struck by Israeli tank fire during Operation Cast Lead. (Dario Sanchez/The Media Line.
Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish, whose three daughters and a niece were killed in January 2009 when his house in Gaza was struck by Israeli tank fire during Operation Cast Lead, appealed for truth and justice in a hearing before Israel’s Supreme Court.
Abuelaish appealed to the Supreme Court for compensation for the girls’ deaths, after a lower court in 2018 ruled that they were killed in an “act of war,” and that in such a case the state is not required to pay out damages. During the hearing on Monday, Justice Yitzhak Amit called the deaths of Abuelaish’s daughters – Bessan, 21; Mayar, 15; and Aya, 13; and niece Nour, 17 – a “tragedy that stood out” and said that the court “shares in your sorrow.” The court will announce its decision on the case at a date in the future.
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Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish shows family photos to reporters outside of Israel’s Supreme Court on November 15, 2021. (Dario Sanchez/The Media Line)
But Abuelaish told The Media Line that he wants an apology from the prime minister. “I hope Prime Minister (Naftali) Bennett calls me for a meeting to apologize and offer compensation for my daughter and niece’s lives. I’m committed to bring my daughters to justice in a civilized, legal, human way. That’s what I would like. The goal is how we can achieve justice in a legal way. We have to have order and good relations and for people to follow rules,” Abuelaish told The Media Line on Monday morning before the hearing.
Abuelaish, who published the book “I Shall Not Hate: A Gaza Doctor’s Journey on the Road to Peace and Human Dignity,” has said that he will donate any money he receives in a judgement or a settlement to the Daughters for Life Foundation that he established in memory of his daughters. The foundation, which provides educational scholarships, is dedicated to empowering young women in the Middle East.
