Israel Officially Permits Use Of Live Ammo On Palestinian Stone Throwers

Israel will allow its police officers and the IDF to fire on Palestinian and other stone-throwers if civilian lives are deemed to be at risk, as well as in self-defense.

A 4-year minimum sentence for stone throwing has also been approved.

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In a statement, the Prime Minsisters office said “The Israeli Security Cabinet has decided to authorize police to use live ammunition against people throwing stones and Molotov cocktails when the life of a third person is threatened and no longer only when the police officer is threatened”

RT reports: Until recently, police officers were only allowed to fire when their own lives were in danger.

Speaking at a Thursday meeting, Netanyahu stressed that his cabinet wants to change the situation where stone throwers “can hurl these lethal and murderous objects without response and without being foiled,” Haaretz reported.

Netanyahu praised the development on Twitter after the cabinet voted unanimously in favor of the measure, saying that “in Israel, these murderous objects won’t be thrown unanswered and without prevention.”

A thug threw stones at cars in Jerusalem until he murdered an Israeli man. We are declaring war on stone throwers. pic.twitter.com/VzSiIYu9MU

— Benjamin Netanyahu (@netanyahu) September 16, 2015

From now on, IDF troops and Israeli police officers are allowed to fire .22 Ruger sniper rifles at rock throwers with live rounds if they consider their lives or the life of a third person endangered.

The vote went through despite Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein’s opposition. The Attorney General argued on September 21 that his recent measure, which authorized the use of Ruger rifles against certain stone-throwers in East Jerusalem, was “sufficient as is” for the moment.

Other changes approved included a minimum four-year prison sentence for rock throwers, including imprisonment and fines for minors aged 14-18, the cancellation of welfare benefits for minors in prison, and a re-evaluation of financial subsidies paid to parents if their 12-14 year-old children are convicted.