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Ahmad Salih Manasra, a 14-year old Palestinian boy has been charged with two counts of attempted murder for allegedly carrying out a stabbing attack in an Israeli settlement in October after his 15-year old cousin was shot dead by Israeli troops at scene, Palestinian Ma’an news agency reported Tuesday.
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Ahmad Salih Manasra was found guilty by the court of carrying out a stabbing attack on Oct. 12, 2015 in an illegal settlement near Israeli occupied East Jerusalem, injuring two Israelis. The sentence against Manasra has yet to be revealed.
Ahmad, who was 13 at the time of the attack, sustained serious wounds after an Israeli driver hit him with his car following the stabbing.
A lawyer working with the Palestinian Committee of Prisoners’ Affairs, Tariq Barghouth, called the court decision "contestable,” adding that the court decision would likely be appealed.
"We hope the Supreme Court will view this humanitarian case differently," Barghouth said. "Once again, the Israeli court proves its racist treatment of the Palestinians."
The lawyer slammed the “double standard” of the Israeli justice system when it comes to punishing Palestinians accused of committing crimes against Israelis, compared to cases of settlers attacking Palestinians. Manasra’s cousin, 15-year old Hassan Manasra, was shot dead at the scene of the attack.
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Also in November video footage was leaked showing Israeli detectives screaming and swearing at Manasra during an interrogation. The Palestinian government denounced the detectives’ actions as "gross violations" of international humanitarian law in the case.
Israeli security forces have been accused of obtaining forced confessions from alleged attackers.
Meanwhile, Ma’an reported that Manasra’s trial was postponed a number of times, which some rights and legal experts claim was an attempt to delay the case until he turned 14 in January, at which time he became old enough under Israeli law to be given a prison sentence.
Under Israeli laws, Palestinian children aged 14 could be tried in court, but such policy does not apply to Israelis as they have to be at least 16 to be face criminal charges or be imprisoned.
More than 200 Palestinians have been killed since October as part of renewed violence in the Palestinian occupied West Bank. Many of those killed did not pose a threat to Israeli troops and were shot during clashes and protests or in alleged stabbing attacks.
The recent violence was sparked by successive incursions by hard-line Israeli groups into Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, the third-holiest site in Islam.
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