ibi (Courtesy)
The release of one of the settlers held on suspicion of involvement in the fatal shooting of a young Palestinian last week has sparked controversy and accusations of discrimination. Yehiel Indore and Elisha Yered were arrested on Saturday over the killing of 19-year-old Qusai Jamal Matan. Indore is suspected of the shooting itself, while Yered is suspected of involvement and obstructing the police investigation.
On Wednesday evening, Yered was released to house arrest after a delay for legal proceedings. However, Indore will remain in custody after the police successfully appealed against his release. The Supreme Court temporarily froze Yered’s pending release until a remand hearing could take place, and the lower court ordered his release on Wednesday afternoon. Indore, who remains hospitalized after being injured during clashes at the time of the killing, was also ordered released from detention at the same hearing.
The police later appealed both decisions, and the Jerusalem District Court ordered Indore to remain in detention until Friday while allowing Yered’s release to stand. The far-right Honenu legal aid group, representing Yered and Indore, hailed the initial court decision to release them both and called for the investigation to be closed, claiming that the incident was an Arab terror incident and that the suspects acted in self-defense.
The incident occurred during a clash between Israeli settlers and Palestinians in the northern West Bank. The IDF stated that clashes erupted after settlers herded sheep in the area, and Palestinians approached them to push them out from their lands. A verbal confrontation turned violent, with both sides hurling stones and Palestinians launching fireworks. Israeli civilians fired toward the Palestinians, resulting in the death of Matan and injuries to four others.
Yered is suspected of involvement in the shooting and obstructing the investigation by taking the pistol home with him. He will be under house arrest at his uncle’s home, with restrictions on phone conversations and limited permission to leave the premises. Indore, who is under police guard in a Jerusalem hospital, will remain in detention until Friday.
The release of Yered and Indore has raised concerns of discrimination, as two coalition lawmakers were permitted to visit Indore in the hospital while Arab MK Ahmad Tibi was denied permission to visit several Palestinians arrested in connection with the clash. National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, who oversees the police, defended the discrepancy, stating that Tibi cannot visit rioters in the middle of an investigation. Tibi accused the government of discrimination and criticized Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, questioning whether the world will continue to see Israel as a democracy.After a day of legal battling, one of the settlers held on suspicion of involvement in the fatal shooting of a young Palestinian last week was released to house arrest on Wednesday evening after a delay for legal proceedings, while the other will remain in custody after the police successfully appealed late in the day against his release.
Yehiel Indore and Elisha Yered, a former spokesman for the far-right Otzma Yehudit party’s MK Limor Son Har-Melech, were arrested Saturday over the killing of 19-year-old Qusai Jamal Matan.
Indore is suspected of the shooting itself, while Yered is suspected of involvement and of obstructing the police investigation.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday morning temporarily froze Yered’s pending release from custody to house arrest until a previously scheduled Jerusalem Magistrate’s Court remand hearing could take place — and the lower court ordered his release on Wednesday afternoon.
Indore, who remains hospitalized after he was injured during clashes at the time of the killing, was also ordered released from detention at the same hearing at the Jerusalem Magistrate’s Court.
The police later appealed both decisions, and the Jerusalem District Court ordered Indore to remain in detention until Friday while allowing Yered’s release to stand.
The far-right Honenu legal aid group, which is representing Yered and Indore, hailed the initial court decision to release them both, and called for the investigation to be closed.
“This incident is absolutely an Arab terror incident,” charged lawyer Adi Keidar in a statement, repeating the defense’s claim the suspects acted in self-defense.
Indore is suspected of shooting Matan last Friday during a clash between Israeli settlers and Palestinians in the northern West Bank, just outside the town of Burqa.
The IDF has said that according to witnesses, clashes erupted adjacent to Burqa after settlers from a nearby outpost herded sheep in the area. Palestinians from the town approached the settlers to push them out from their lands, when a verbal confrontation erupted. At one point, both sides began hurling stones at each other and Palestinians also launched fireworks.
“During the confrontation, Israeli civilians fired toward the Palestinians. As a result of the confrontation, a Palestinian was killed, four others were injured, and a Palestinian vehicle was found burnt,” the IDF said in a statement Saturday.
Yered is suspected of involvement in the shooting and obstructing the investigation by taking the pistol home with him.
Yered will be under house arrest at his uncle’s home. He is prohibited from holding phone conversations and is permitted to leave the premises only to attend police questioning or court hearings.
Indore is under police guard in a Jerusalem hospital, where he is being treated for a serious head injury he sustained when a Palestinian threw
What were the grounds for the release of Yered and Indore from detention?
Time of the killing, was also ordered released from detention at the same hearing.
However, the police later appealed both decisions, and the Jerusalem District Court ordered Indore to remain in detention until Friday while allowing Yered’s release to stand.
The far-right Honenu legal aid group, representing Yered and Indore, praised the initial court decision to release them both and called for the investigation to be closed, asserting that the incident was an act of Arab terror and that the suspects acted in self-defense.
The incident took place during a clash between Israeli settlers and Palestinians in the northern West Bank. According to the IDF, the clashes began after settlers herded sheep in the area and Palestinians approached them to try to remove them from their lands. A verbal confrontation escalated into violence, with both sides throwing stones and Palestinians launching fireworks. Israeli civilians opened fire at the Palestinians, resulting in Matan’s death and injuries to four others.
Yered is suspected of involvement in the shooting and obstructing the investigation by taking the pistol home with him. He will be under house arrest at his uncle’s residence, with restrictions on phone conversations and limited permission to leave the premises. Indore, who is under police guard in a Jerusalem hospital, will remain in detention until Friday.
The release of Yered and Indore has raised concerns about discrimination, as two coalition lawmakers were allowed to visit Indore in the hospital while Arab MK Ahmad Tibi was denied permission to visit several Palestinians arrested in connection with the clash. National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, who oversees the police, defended the discrepancy, stating that Tibi cannot visit rioters in the middle of an investigation. Tibi accused the government of discrimination and aimed criticism at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, questioning whether Israel will continue to be seen as a democracy.
I hope justice will be served and the truth will come to light for the victim and their family.