(WASHINGTON, D.C., 8/24/2023) – The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today called for concrete action after a U.S. Department of State spokesperson anonymously expressed alarm over a video showing Israeli forces shooting a Palestinian in the back of his head during a raid in the illegally-occupied West Bank.
A State Department spokesperson reportedly told a foreign news agency on condition of anonymity: “We are alarmed by reports of an Israeli shooting an unarmed Palestinian civilian from behind as the latter was walking away from an Israeli position.”
In a statement, CAIR National Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell said:
“We know from past crimes, like the brazen murder of journalist and American citizen Shireen Abu Akleh, that the far-right Israeli apartheid government will never hold itself accountable for attacking Palestinian civilians, even when such acts of violence are caught on camera.
“It is up to our nation, which sends billions of taxpayer dollars to the Israeli government each year, to use our financial leverage to demand accountability for these crimes and an end to the illegal occupation of Palestinian land. Anonymous calls for the Israeli government to investigate itself are insufficient.”
He noted that a top Israeli government minister – in an open declaration of apartheid ideology – said his rights will always outweigh those of Palestinians.
CAIR recently lodged a formal complaint with the State Department and the Department of Homeland Security concerning the discriminatory, abusive, and traumatic treatment that Israeli government agents at Ben Gurion Airport perpetrated against an American citizen during the ongoing U.S. visa waiver trial period.
Earlier this month, CAIR shared multiple separate instances of the Israeli government singling out and discriminating against American citizens of Palestinian descent attempting to travel to Israel and Palestine. CAIR also encouraged community members who have experienced travel discrimination at Israeli border crossings to report their experiences.
Last Month, called on the Biden administration to launch a transparent investigation of a violent assault Israeli soldiers perpetrated against a Palestinian-American from Tennessee who filmed them abusing other Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.
Washington, D.C., based CAIR has previously called on the Biden administration to stand up to the new Israeli government composed of openly racist and genocidal far-right politicians.
Last year, CAIR welcomed an investigation by a UN commission of inquiry into the Israeli government’s system of apartheid against Palestinians.
In an open letter, five former European ministers labeled Israel’s policies against Palestinians as “the crime of apartheid.” Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and the Presbyterian Church USA have labeled Israel an apartheid state. The UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Adequate Housing also recognized that Israel is committing apartheid against Palestinians.
A group of Israeli law professors says changes introduced by the current far-right Israeli government “validate the claim that Israel practices apartheid.”
CAIR’s mission is to protect civil rights, enhance understanding of Islam, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.
La misión de CAIR es proteger las libertades civiles, mejorar la comprensión del Islam, promover la justicia, y empoderar a los musulmanes en los Estados Unidos.
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CONTACT: CAIR National Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell, 404-285-9530, e-Mitchell@cair.com; CAIR Government Affairs Director Robert McCaw, 202-742-6448, rmccaw@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, ihooper@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Manager Ismail Allison, 202-770-6280, iallison@cair.com