The Israeli Justice Ministry decided on Tuesday to try the Israeli officer who shot and killed an Arab resident of Israel, and has decided to file charges of manslaughter against him.An Israeli online daily reported that the officer, identified only as S.M, shot and killed Mahmoud Abu Satah Ghanayim, aged 24. The officer initially claimed that he suspected that Ghanayim broke into a vehicle.
The officer also claimed that he shot the man out of self defense, but his version of the events were not coherent.
the report also said that the Justice Ministry told its correspondent on Tuesday that the Haifa District Attorney had made the decision to try the officer, adding that changes could be made to the charge after the hearing.
The family of Ghanayim and their defense attorney, Zion Amir, were notified of the court's decision.
The family of Ghanayim said that “manslaughter charges” are not enough since “the officer fired with an intension to kill”, and did not make any advanced warning to their son.
The family also said that the officer is still allowed to perform his duties in spite of the incident.
“Its seems that this is a prize for that officer”, the family stated, “It is an indicator to other officers that they can kill Arabs without fearing punishment”.
