The family of a 10-year old girl shot and killed by Israeli soldiers in 2007 have vowed to bring the soldiers responsible to trial, after an Israeli court ruled Monday that the shooting was unlawful.Abir Aramin, 10, was killed in her neighborhood in East Jerusalem by Israeli troops invading the area. Initially, the Israeli military claimed that Aramin had been hit in the head by a rock thrown by Palestinian youth, and immediately closed the case.
But the girl’s parents worked for years to expose the truth of the case, and were able to prove to a skeptical Israeli court that the evidence showed Aramin was killed by the soldiers.
Her father, Bassam Aramin, was a former resistance fighter who helped found Combatants for Peace, which brings together former Israeli soldiers and Palestinian fighters for talks on their decision to turn to non-violence and dialogue as a way to resolve the conflict.
He told Agence France Presse reporters, “’I have been working day and night for three and a half years to prove that they killed Abeer, and the fatigue is almost worse than the pain and suffering of losing my daughter”. He added, “I am one of those who support peace. I have Israeli friends in the peace movement and even they did not believe that Abeer was shot by Israeli soldiers … I wanted to prove to them that their soldiers killed my daughter.”
The Aramin family’s struggle with the Israeli courts is far from over – they now plan to pursue criminal charges against the soldiers involved in the killing. This type of trial could take years, but they are hopeful that justice for the 10-year old will eventually be achieved.
