Fifteen-year-old Palestinian-American Tarek Abu Khdeir was released on ILS 3,000 bail Sunday after two days in Israeli detention, Palestinian News Agency, Ma’an reported.
Ma’an added that an Israeli court had also sentenced the youth to nine days house arrest.
Abu Khdeir, among 11 Palestinians beaten and arrested last Thursday according to the Palestinian prisoner support and human rights organisation, Addameer. He was also filmed being beaten by two undercover Israeli police agents in his uncle’s backyard, an attack which saw him suffer severe face and head injuries.
“The Israeli police delayed treatment for about 5 hours until 1:20AM, when he was transferred to Hadassa Hospital,” Addameer quoted Salah Abu Khdeir, Tarek’s father. “The family was denied access to Tarek until his hospitalisation.”
The United States said on Saturday that it was “profoundly concerned” over the detention of the US citizen, AFP reported.
Meanwhile, Israel continued to launch airstrikes on ten sites in Gaza Sunday, Reuters said. The Israeli military released a statement claiming the strikes were in retaliation for rockets fired from Gaza towards Southern Israel.
Clashes in the West Bank intensified after Tarek’s cousin, Mohamed Abu Khdeir, a 16-year-old Palestinian, was abducted and killed by Israeli settlers in the West Bank. His body was found last Wednesday on the ruins of the Palestinian village, Deir Yassin.
Autopsy results showed that Mohamed was brutally beaten and burned alive. Israeli police arrested six people on Sunday for the murder of the Palestinian teenager, AFP reported.
Israel launched the operation after three teenage Israeli settlers went missing in mid-June as they were hiking near Israeli settlements, their bodies being found on 30 June in Hebron.
Israel blamed Hamas for the killing of the three teenagers, although Hamas have repeatedly denied responsibility.
“The clashes in the West Bank and the shootings in Gaza are connected. Israel wants to put an end to Hamas’s presence in the West Bank and destroy them in Gaza,” said Hani Al-Basoos, Professor of Political Science and the Islamic University of Gaza. “Israel wants to link Gaza and the West Bank to blame Hamas for everything, and have enough justification to see an end to the group. They have already arrested Hamas leaders in the West Bank.”
Since Israel initiated its campaign “Operation Brother’s Keeper” against the West Bank, Israeli forces killed six Palestinians and detained over 500 others.
“The Israeli escalation on the West Bank and Gaza could result in another Palestinian intifada,” said Al-Basoos. “Clashes erupted between young Palestinians and Israeli forces last week and have been continuing ever since.”
