The United Nations Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Tor Wennesland, has condemned an Israeli police officer for shooting and killing an Arab terrorist who wrestled with him while trying to steal his weapon.
Wennesland didn’t bother to check his facts before tweeting his acceptance of the Palestinian Authority version.
You conveniently tweeted an edited version, missing the attempted rifle snatch by 3 perpetrators, stabbing by one, and finally the lethal shots in SELF DEFENSE. pic.twitter.com/7b86EoNKr0
— LTC (R) Peter Lerner (@LTCPeterLerner) December 2, 2022
The terrorist had already stabbed one Israeli police officer in the face – and together with two others, was threatening the life of a second when the incident occurred.
1/5 Terrorist Neutralized in the area of Huwara: Today at approximately 16:00, a Palestinian terrorist armed with a knife tried to break into a vehicle of an Israeli couple in the area of Huwara pic.twitter.com/MwMGAXGWfg
— Israel Police (@israelpolice) December 2, 2022
Edited video of the incident left out the relevant details that preceded the struggle leading to the shooting.
Israel Police tweeted a statement about the incident on Friday, with full details:
“Today at approximately 16:00, a Palestinian terrorist armed with a knife tried to break into a vehicle of an Israeli couple in the area of Huwara.
“When the terrorist realized the car was locked, he tried to break into the car with a rock and was shot by the car driver (IDF officer on vacation) who was carrying a weapon.
“The terrorist, who appears to have been wounded from the fire, identified a team of Israeli Border Police officers who were patrolling nearby. The terrorist approached them and stabbed one of the Border Police officers in the face.
“The company commander of the officers, who was at the scene, rushed towards the terrorist, who put up a fight and attempted to grab the officer’s weapon. Fearing for his life and the well-being of others in the vicinity, the officer shot the terrorist and neutralized him.
“A Border Police officer and the company commander were lightly injured and evacuated for medical treatment. The terrorist was neutralized and his death was determined on the spot.”
In the edited video, an Israeli Druze Border Guard Police officer — the commanding officer — is seen finally pulling out his pistol and shot his assailant, killing him after failing to free himself of the third attacker.
In response, Wennesland tweeted his condemnation of the police officer for defending himself.
“Horrified by today’s killing of a Palestinian man, Ammar Mifleh, during a scuffle with an Israeli soldier near Huwarra in the o. West Bank. My heartfelt condolences to his bereaved family. Such incidents must be fully & promptly investigated, & those responsible held accountable.”
Israel’s Deputy Director General for Public Diplomacy at Israel’s Foreign Ministry, Emmanuel Nahshon, immediately tweeted Israel’s outrage at the lopsided UN response.
This reaction is a total distortion of reality. This incident is a terror attack, in which an Israeli policeman was stabbed in his face and the life of another police officer was threatened and consequently he shot his assailant. This is NOT a “scuffle”-this is a terror attack! https://t.co/1yoK8h7ehM
— Emmanuel Nahshon (@EmmanuelNahshon) December 3, 2022
“This reaction is a total distortion of reality,” Nahshon wrote. “This incident is a terror attack, in which an Israeli policeman was stabbed in his face and the life of another police officer was threatened and consequently he shot his assailant. This is NOT a “scuffle” – this is a terror attack!”
A full investigation and holding those responsible to be accountable might lead to the doorstep of the Muqata in Ramallah, the office of Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas, who offers financial rewards to terrorists for their attacks on Israelis — but that is not the kind of investigation the United Nations conducts.
