PA calls minister’s death a “war crime,” “a cold-blooded killing” and claims he was “targeted”
“Fatah Revolutionary Council member and Head of the [PA] Committee to Resist Settlements and the Wall Minister Ziyad Abu Ein died as a Martyr (Shahid) yesterday [Dec. 10, 2014], after being beaten by occupation soldiers during a peaceful march held in the village of Turmus Ayya north of Ramallah… The National Consensus Government announced that Abu Ein’s death as a Martyr was a crime, one of the [many] crimes perpetrated against the Palestinian leadership and people. The government said that this act was most severe and would not be passed over in silence. In addition, it said that this act indicates Israel’s tendency toward escalation against the defenseless Palestinian citizens and their holy places, and its intention to exploit this for the political agenda of a few extremist Israeli parties in the upcoming Israeli elections… The Secretary and members of the PLO Executive Committee condemned this abominable crime, which they described as a barbaric act perpetrated by the Israel occupation forces on International Human Rights Day. The Executive Committee laid full responsibility for this act of terrorism, which will not be passed over in silence, on the extreme right-wing Israeli government… In response to this crime, the Executive Committee emphasized the need to halt all forms of security cooperation with the occupation authority and to quickly join the International Criminal Court… The [PA] Foreign Ministry emphasized that it would examine the targeted [killing] of Martyr Abu Ein in international forums. In addition, he said that the murder of Abu Ein represented a war crime in every sense of the word, one of the [many] crimes perpetrated by the occupation authorities on a daily basis against our people, its leadership, land and homeland… District Governor of Ramallah and El-Bireh Dr. Laila Ghannam emphasized that the cold-blooded killing of the Minister amounted to a declaration of war against all those who seek to uphold human rights.”
From WAFA, official PA news agency
Note: Ziad Abu Ein died on Dec. 10, 2014 at a demonstration in the West Bank that turned violent. Immediately following his death, PA and Fatah leaders claimed that Abu Ein was murdered. Footage from the event shows Abu Ein in an altercation with an Israeli soldier who grabbed Abu Ein by the neck, and later shows Abu Ein clutching his chest in pain while lying on the ground. The autopsy, which was overseen by Israeli and Palestinian pathologists, revealed that the cause of death was a heart attack, but disagreement remains over whether the clashes with Israeli forces at the demonstration may have caused the heart attack. Palestinians have continued to describe Abu Ein's death as a "murder" and "assassination" by Israel.
From WAFA, official PA news agency
Note: Ziad Abu Ein died on Dec. 10, 2014 at a demonstration in the West Bank that turned violent. Immediately following his death, PA and Fatah leaders claimed that Abu Ein was murdered. Footage from the event shows Abu Ein in an altercation with an Israeli soldier who grabbed Abu Ein by the neck, and later shows Abu Ein clutching his chest in pain while lying on the ground. The autopsy, which was overseen by Israeli and Palestinian pathologists, revealed that the cause of death was a heart attack, but disagreement remains over whether the clashes with Israeli forces at the demonstration may have caused the heart attack. Palestinians have continued to describe Abu Ein's death as a "murder" and "assassination" by Israel.