On February 22, an Israeli court handed down one of the most serious punishments to an Israeli soldier for illegally killing a Palestinian — four-and-a-half months in prison. On June 8, 2003, an Israeli soldier at a Jenin checkpoint spotted a Palestinian taxi trying to bypass the checkpoint. He immediately opened fire, killing the driver with a shot to the head with a telescopic rifle. Many Palestinians try to bypass checkpoints, which can slow a journey up by hours. The soldier then constructed a story with the others at the checkpoint, claiming he fired into the air. The judges, who appeared to view the lie as more serious than the murder, took the soldier's excellent service record into account. The soldier was also demoted from staff sergeant to private.
From Green Left Weekly, March 2, 2005.
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