The US said on Tuesday that it expects a thorough criminal investigation and full accountability in the case of an elderly Palestinian-American who was found dead after being detained by Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank, Anadolu News Agency reported.
In a statement, State Department spokesman, Ned Price, said that the US continues to be “deeply concerned by the circumstances” of the death of 80-year-old Omar Abdulmajeed Asad. “We continue to discuss this troubling incident with the Israeli government,” Price said.
Two Israeli officers will be fired from their positions while a third will be reprimanded over the death of an elderly Palestinian-American who died after being detained by Israeli soldiers in the occupied West Bank, Israeli media reported on Tuesday.https://t.co/Lsfn3r6WiZ pic.twitter.com/WPYUbbSXZ4
— The Palestine Chronicle (@PalestineChron) February 1, 2022
“We convey, again, our deepest sympathies and condolences to the family of Mr. Asad. The Department of State has no higher priority than the safety and security of US citizens abroad,” Price added.
According to an Israeli military statement released on Tuesday, the death of Omar Asad, who had lived in Milwaukee before retiring to his native Palestinian hometown of Jiljilya, resulted from “a moral failure and poor decision-making”.
Isreali soldiers detained 78-year-old Omar Asad on January 12, at around 3 AM, during a raid in the occupied West Bank village of Jiljilya, near Ramallah.
Background on the killing of Omar Asad: https://t.co/vBL3CZKOWw
— Sarit Michaeli (@saritm0) January 23, 2022
Fouad Moutee, head of the Jiljilya village council, told the official Palestinian news agency WAFA that Asad was going home after a visit to his relatives when Israeli soldiers stopped his vehicle and pulled him out, blindfolded and handcuffed him, before leaving him in an under-construction building.
At approximately 4:30 in the morning, after the Israeli soldiers had left the area, residents rushed to the building and found Asad’s lifeless body. Palestinians hold Israeli soldiers responsible for his death.
(The Palestine Chronicle, MEMO, Social Media)
