Settler convicted of kidnapping, abusing Palestinian teen

[Scurrilous]

Shiloh resident Zvi Struk kidnapped 15-year-old boy, beat him and left him naked, blindfolded and bound in field. Yesh Din: Most Palestinian complaints end without indictment

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3985625,00.html

<snip>

"Zvi Struk from the settlement of Shiloh was convicted Sunday of kidnapping and abusing a bound 15-year-old Palestinian boy.

The 28-year-old settler is the son of Yesha Human Rights Organization head Orit Struk.

The indictment stated that Struk, arrived at an outpost located between Shiloh and Kfar Kusra in the West Bank. He arrived on a mini tractor and began to chase Palestinian youths at the scene.

The youths attempted to escape, but Struk cornered one of them and his friend, armed with Struk's M-16 rifle, began to fire in the air. According to the prosecution, Struk then began to beat the boy, who had put his hands up in surrender, and knocked him to the ground.

The indictment went on to say that Struk's friend continued to beat the boy while he chased another youth, beat him, and dragged him to the mini tractor bleeding. He then proceeded to blindfold and tie him to the tractor, and rode off with his hostage in tow.

The prosecution claimed that the boy, Amran Farah, lost consciousness during the ride, and was brought to an open field where the two suspects beat him, undressed him, and left him blindfolded and tied. He remained there for a number of hours, until he managed to untie himself and find a car to take him home.

The boy was hospitalized in Nablus, and diagnosed with multiple contusions and lesions all over his body."

[BrklynLiberal]

1. Hypocrites, one and all....

[Violet_Crumble]

2. It'll be interesting to see what the sentence handed down will be...

What that settler did was revolting and totally inhumane. What's nearly as bad as what that boy endured at those sickos hands is that so many other attacks on Palestinians by settlers never lead to indictments...


on edit: Let's call these people what they are - terrorists. They should be treated the same way as any other terrorist is, imo...

[oberliner]

3. Why?

And why would you use the word terrorist in this context?

[arcticken]

10. Why do you think given her posting

history re: Israel?

[Violet_Crumble]

13. I've got the poster yr replying to on ignore, but I assume yr snarking about me...

My posting history re Israel is that I legitimately criticise the Israeli govt for its treatment of the Palestinians. I'm not sure what you think yr achieving with petty and childish comments like that one you made about me. It's probably a better idea to talk about the topic of the thread rather than about me, but that's only a suggestion...

[oberliner]

15. Honestly not sure

Would love to see a response from the poster in question.

[Dick Dastardly]

6. You are wrong

He is not a terrorist, he is a sicko child abuser/molester. Only a sadistic sicko child molester would strip a child naked, tie them up, blindfold them and beat them. He needs to discover the joy of becoming Bubbas new girlfriend in prison.

[Violet_Crumble]

8. No, I think both of us are actually right....

It's possible to be a child abuser as well as being a terrorist, and this guy proves the point....

[Violet_Crumble]

4. B'Tselem - settler violence

cardinal task of any government is to enforce the law and protect the life, property, and rights of persons under its authority. For Israel, this duty applies not only to Israeli citizens residing within the state or territories under Israeli control, but also to Palestinians living in the Occupied Territories.

When Palestinians attack Israelis, the authorities invoke all means at their disposal – including some that are incompatible with international law and constitute gross violations of human rights – to arrest the suspects and bring them to trial. Defendants convicted by military courts can expect harsh sentences.

In contrast, when Israeli civilians attack Palestinians, the Israeli authorities employ an undeclared policy of leniency and compromise toward the perpetrators. This policy is reflected in the actions of officials in charge of law enforcement – the Israel Defense Force (IDF) and the Israel Police Force (IPF) – which do not do enough to prevent harm to the life and property of Palestinians, and to stop the violent attacks by settlers while they are taking place. All law enforcement agencies and judicial authorities demonstrate little interest in uncovering the substantial violence that Israeli civilians commit against Palestinians in the Occupied Territories.

Many failures of law enforcement against Israeli settlers in the Occupied Territories, and the discrimination underlying these failures, greatly undermine the rule of law in Israel, not only in the Occupied Territories, but in the State of Israel as well.

http://www.btselem.org/english/Settler_Violence/Index.asp

[oberliner]

5. Welcome back to the I/P forum

Glad to see you have come back to elevate the level of discourse here.

[ilaughatrightwingers]

7. Once again

Israeli settlers act like monsters, and the US funds them.

[ProgressiveMajority]

9. Nothing settlers do shocks me anymore

They've been found to poison wells, livestock, burn crops, cut down olive trees.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=124&topic_id=90213&mesg_id=90213
http://demopedia.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=124x8859

Until Israel stops supporting settler terrorism we should cut off all support to Israel and probably add them to the state Sponsors of terror list.

[shira]

11. Accusing Jews of poisoning wells is a very old and discredited medieval blood libel. n/t

[Donald Ian Rankin]

16. Well, so is accusing them of attacking children, if it comes to that... N.T.

[oberliner]

17. How so?

What are you talking about?

[Donald Ian Rankin]

18. The actual "blood libel" - as opposed to generic antisemitic myths

was that Jews sacrified christian children to passover.

Shira was citing the fact that Jews have, in the past, falsely been accused of poisoning wells (and mis-terming that a blood libel) as evidence against claims that settlers have been poisoning the water supplies of the Palestinians.

I was pointing out that this is not logical, any more than claiming that the actual blood libel was evidence that the incident in the OP did not happen.

[oberliner]

20. Got it

Thanks for clarifying.

[shira]

21. What's not logical is to accuse the entire settler/jewish movement of crimes only few commit. N/T

[Donald Ian Rankin]

22. You're right, that isn't logical either.

Which is why I don't do it. The entire settler movement is, by definition, guilty of illegal occupation of land, but only some of them are guilty of other criminal acts against the Palestinians.

And talking about the settler/Jewish movement is contemptible and bordering on the antisemitic. Please don't tar us all with the same brush.

[shira]

23. A participant was demonizing settlers earlier in this thread...

I'm sure you'd have a problem with Palestinians being labeled the same way, as terrorists, against peace, etc...

[Violet_Crumble]

24. No regular in this forum broadbrushes all settlers or the Jewish movement (whatever that is)

I agree with yr description of what the entire settler movement is guilty of. However, there are extremist settlers who do engage in acts which, if carried out by Palestinians would be labelled terrorism. It's not broadbrushing to point to what the extremist settlers do and call them what they really are...

[oberliner]

26. You wouldn't know that

As you apparently have some (or one?) of the regulars in this forum on ignore.

[Donald Ian Rankin]

19. Also, go and learn what the blood libel actual is/was. N.T.

[ProgressiveMajority]

25. Than maybe Israeli settlers should stop poisoning wells and livestock

As seen here:

http://upload.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=124&topic_id=88900&mesg_id=88900

There used to be many more such solid topics covering settler contamination of Palestinian water but many of the topics on DU seem to have been removed.

Here:
http://www.theinsider.org/news/article.asp?id=0964
http://www.countercurrents.org/pa-mcgreal130104.htm

[Violet_Crumble]

12. The poisoning of livestock and destruction of crops by settlers is nasty and ugly...

Most of us would agree that the Israeli govt must bring those settlers responsible to justice and remove them from the West Bank, but we all know the Israeli govt is likely never going to do what's right...

[Violet_Crumble]

14. Long list of settler attacks on Palestinians...

http://www.btselem.org/english/Testimonies/index.asp?TF=01