The video in which the apparent sniper and his colleagues are heard cheering after hitting the man behind the fence emerged on Monday and has been widely shared, sparking a public outcry. The Israeli Defence Force since confirmed the authenticity of the footage, which it says was filmed on December 22, and has pledged disciplinary action over its leaking. The shooting itself, however, has been deemed exemplary.

According to the Israeli army the video was filmed as protesters gathered at the Gaza fence over US President Donald Trump’s decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

In a statement by the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO), chief negotiator Dr Saeb Erekat called the video “a reflection of the cruel mentality of Israel’s military occupation and the drive of its systematic shoot-to-kill policy against the Palestinian civilians”.

Several Israeli ministers have lined up to defend the soldiers in a number of radio interviews on Tuesday, saying the exposure that the video has received is excessive, according to Israeli newspaper Haaretz.

According to the IDF, the Palestinian man was deemed to have been organising a “riot, which included rock hurling and attempts to sabotage the security fence”. It added the man had been hit in the leg.

Liberman said last week in a radio interview that “there are no innocents in Gaza” and that everyone living in the occupied territory had some connection to Hamas.

The comment followed after Israeli soldiers opened fire on angry Palestinian protesters at the border fence on Friday, killing nine and wounding hundreds more. Dozens of protesters have been killed by Israeli soldiers since the start of the protests on March 30. The IDF has defended its actions, saying protesters had "attempted to damage and cross the security fence" and "attempted to hurl explosive devices".

The PLO took to Twitter on Sunday, accusing Liberman of continuing to “incite hatred, racism, and discrimination against the people of Palestine.”</s>Israel's military on Tuesday confirmed the authenticity of a video that shows soldiers celebrate after shooting a protester on the other side of the Gaza border.

A number of Israeli ministers, including defense chief Avigdor Lieberman, defended the soldiers in the video, while the military said the Palestinian had been shot in the leg and wounded. It was not clear whether the victim had died.

Read more: Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman defends use of force against Gaza protests

The military also alleged that the incident took place last December following riots and warnings from troops. "During the riot, means were taken in order to disperse it, including verbal warnings and calls to halt, using riot dispersal means and firing warning shots into the air," the army said in a statement.

In the video, which surfaced on Monday, voices can be heard discussing whether to open fire at a Palestinian standing close to a fence. After the shooter opens fire, knocking the man to the ground, one of the voices says in Hebrew, "Wow. What a video! Yes! That son of a bitch."

The video's release comes at a highly sensitive time for Israel's military, which is under increasing international scrutiny for its use of live fire on the Gaza border. At least 31 Palestinians have been killed and hundreds more wounded following the outbreak of protests and clashes at the border since March 30.

Saeb Erekat, a top official with the Palestinian Authority, has described the shootings as "extrajudicial killings."

There have been no critical Israeli casualties.

After the authenticity of the video was confirmed, Lieberman told reporters that the sniper "deserves a medal" for shooting the Palestinian, but that the solider who recorded the incident should be demoted.

The military said the unauthorized filming and distribution of the material would be dealt with accordingly.

Israeli Education Minister Naftali Bennett of the far-right Jewish Home party also justified the shooter's behavior, telling army radio: "Judging soldiers because they are not expressing themselves elegantly while they are defending our borders is not serious."

Israeli Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan downplayed the significance of the video, telling local media that the video "doesn't show gunfire at everyone, but at a terrorist who approaches the barrier in an unauthorized zone coming from an area controlled by Hamas terrorists."

On the Palestinian side, however, senior official Hanan Ashrawi said the video showed what Palestinians have long decried as Israeli soldiers' everyday behavior on the Gaza border, "but nobody has been listening."

For both sides of the conflict, the incident presented a stark reminder of a 2016 video filmed by a human rights group that showed an Israeli soldier shooting a prone Palestinian assailant in the head without any apparent provocation.

The Israeli soldier, Elor Azaria, was convicted of manslaughter but the case highlighted Israel's public divide between those who denounced the killing and those who believed it was justified.

Read more: What it means to be a soldier in Israel

Several right-wing Israeli politicians called for Azaria to be pardoned, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He was eventually released after serving half of an 18-month prison sentence.

Each evening at 1830 UTC, DW's editors send out a selection of the day's hard news and quality feature journalism. You can sign up to receive it directly here.</s>JERUSALEM, April 9 (Reuters) - The Israeli military said on Monday that it was investigating a video that appears to show an Israeli army sniper shooting a motionless Palestinian across the border in Gaza, to whoops of excitement from the onlooker.

Israeli television channels broadcast the clip at the start of their primetime evening news bulletins - with one host describing it as "disturbing" - after it circulated widely on social networks.

Its release comes after more than a week of daily protests by Palestinians at the Gaza-Israel border in which 30 Gazans have been shot dead.

However, the Israeli military said that the clip might have been filmed months ago.

The amateur-style video focuses through a lens or viewfinder on a person in the distance, beyond a wire fence, standing still and alone. A gun fires and the person falls to the ground.

"Wow, what a video. Yes! Son of a bitch! What a video. Here, run to evacuate him," a voice says in Hebrew as people are seen running toward the person.

In a tweeted statement, the military said: "With regard to the video of the soldiers at the Gaza Strip border - it was probably an event that occurred a number of months ago. The event will be investigated and examined thoroughly."

Reuters was been unable to verify the source of the video, or its authenticity.

Ayman Odeh, a senior lawmaker from Israel's Arab minority, said it was "a clip that terrifies the soul, rejoicing over the taking of a life and what appears to be the execution of someone who endangered no one". He called for the shooter to be put on trial.

The Israeli military has stationed sharpshooters to enforce a no-go zone near the border fence and stop Palestinian attempts to breach the border during a protest that has been called "The Great March of Return".

The protesters are reviving a long-standing demand for the right of return of Palestinian refugees to towns and villages from which their families fled, or were driven out, when the state of Israel was created.

Protest camps have sprung up a few hundred metres inside the fence. But large groups of youths have ventured considerably nearer, burning tyres and hurling stones.

Israel says it has been warning Gazans for weeks not to approach the border fence, and accuses Hamas, the armed Islamist group that controls Gaza, of instigating the protests.

Israeli officials have declined to specify exact distances that Palestinians must maintain from the fence.

Maps of Gaza from recent years by United Nations humanitarian agencies indicate a "no-go zone" of up to 100 meters from the barrier, with limited access for farmers in some areas from 100-300 metres. (Reporting by Ari Rabinovitch and Stephen Farrell; Editing by Kevin Liffey)</s>JERUSALEM — Israel’s military said Tuesday that soldiers heard in video footage cheering as a Palestinian is shot during Gaza border clashes will be disciplined.

The military said in a statement that an initial probe shows the video was taken in December during riots in which attempts were made to “sabotage the security fence” with Israel. Footage that emerged Monday appeared to show a soldier shooting a Palestinian near the Gaza fence as other soldiers are heard cursing the man and cheering when he falls.

The military said the man was a main instigator in the clashes and was shot in the leg and wounded after ignoring calls to halt.

The statement said the footage was not filmed by the Israeli sharpshooter but by a soldier from a different unit. It condemned the filming of the incident and the statements the soldiers made. It said the troops’ behaviour does not reflect the army’s values and they will be dealt with “accordingly,” without elaborating.

The event apparently took place well before the current campaign of mass protests being led by the Islamic militant group Hamas at the border that began March 30 in which 26 Palestinians have been killed.

Hamas, which rules Gaza, called for the protests to last until May 15, the anniversary of Israel’s founding when Palestinians commemorate their displacement during the 1948 war over Israel’s creation.

The group hopes the protests can create pressure to break a border blockade enforced by Israel and Egypt since 2007 when it took over Gaza, without having to succumb to demands that it disarm.

Israel has accused Hamas of using the recent protests as a cover for carrying out attacks and bringing infiltrators into Israel. It has said some of those at the border tried to damage the fence, planted explosives or hurled fire bombs.</s>JERUSALEM, April 10 (Reuters) - Israel pledged disciplinary action on Tuesday over a soldier's leaked video showing an army sniper targeting a Palestinian across the Gaza border fence to profane praise from an onlooker, but deemed the shooting itself to have been exemplary.

The 81-second clip surfaced on social media on Monday and led Israeli TV news, with one host calling it "disturbing". Its release followed a surge in Palestinian protests at the Gaza border in which 30 demonstrators have been killed by the army.

In a statement summarising a preliminary investigation, the military spokesman said the incident took place took place on Dec. 22, amid Palestinian unrest at U.S. President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as the Israeli capital.

The Palestinian who was shot was suspected of organising a "riot, which included rock hurling and attempts to sabotage the security fence, and lasted about two hours," the statement said.

The sniper fired at him once, wounding him in the leg, after warnings shots and orders to disperse went unheeded, it said, adding that the video was taken by a soldier from another unit.

"As for the unauthorised filming of an operational event, the distribution of the filmed material and the statements made there, it should be noted that these do not suit the degree of restraint expected of IDF (Israel Defence Force) soldiers and will be dealt with by commanders accordingly," the statement said.

It was not clear how many soldiers might face disciplinary action, nor how harsh it might be. In the video, a voice can be heard saying, "Yes! Son of a bitch!" as the Palestinian, who appears to be standing motionless near the fence, is shot.

Remarking on the video on Tuesday, Israeli Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman told reporters: "The Gaza sniper deserves a decoration, and the photographer a demerit."

The Israeli military has stationed sharpshooters to enforce a no-go zone near the border and stop Palestinian attempts to breach the fence during a protest that has been called "The Great March of Return".

The demonstrations are expected to escalate ahead of the planned opening of a new U.S. embassy in Jerusalem on May 14, coinciding with Israel's 70th anniversary celebrations.

The protesters are reviving a long-standing demand for the right of return of Palestinian refugees and their descendants to towns and villages from which families fled, or were driven out, when the state of Israel was created in 1948.</s>The Israeli army has come under fire after a video emerged showing IDF soldiers cheering and rejoicing as a Palestinian protester is shot on the Gaza Strip.

It comes at a highly sensitive time forIsrael's military, which has faced mounting criticism over its use of live fire on the Gaza Strip border, where 31 Palestinians have been killed in recent mass protests.

The video, filmed through the rifle-sight of an Israeli soldier as he opens fire on Palestinians, was captured on December 22 in the area of Kissufim near the Gaza Strip, the Israeli military confirmed.

Officials said that the individual in the clip was hit in the leg and wounded.

Voices can be heard discussing whether to open fire on what seems to be several Palestinians on the other side of the fence.

The Palestinians do not appear to be protesting, are several feet from the fence and are also not carrying out any acts of aggression, such as throwing stones.

A shooter then appears to open fire on one unidentified male, knocking the person to the ground.

'Whoa! What a video! Yes! Son of a b****. What a video!,' a voice believed to belong to the shooter says in Hebrew.

He is also heard bragging about hitting the Palestinian man in the head and the way he fell to the ground after the shot.

As a group of Palestinians can be seen carrying the injured man away, the photographer adds, 'What a legendary video.'

Israeli military officials have not denied the authenticity of the video, but claims it was filmed 'months ago', adding that it 'will be thoroughly investigated'.

Israeli Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan downplayed the actions of those in the video that began to spread widely on Monday night.

'We are going overboard with this video,' said Erdan, from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party.

'It doesn't show gunfire at everyone, but at a terrorist who approaches the barrier in an unauthorised zone coming from an area controlled by Hamas terrorists,' he told public radio.

'I am convinced that everything is OK,' he added, while also speaking of a 'human reaction' by the soldiers confronted with a 'tense situation'.

Education Minister Naftali Bennett of the far-right Jewish Home party also justified the behaviour depicted in the video.

'Judging soldiers because they are not expressing themselves elegantly while they are defending our borders is not serious,' Bennett told army radio.

Senior Palestinian official Hanan Ashrawi said the video showed what Palestinians have long alleged regarding soldiers' actions on the Gaza border, 'but nobody has been listening'.

'We have been complaining about this, but unfortunately nobody believes it unless an Israeli source documents it,' Ashrawi told AFP.

'The issue of sniper fire is not something new at all, but it is time for the world to see and to believe what we have been saying all along.'

Mass protests along the Gaza border beginning on March 30 have led to clashes in which Israeli forces have killed 31 Palestinians and wounded hundreds of others.

There have been no Israeli casualties.

Israel has faced criticism over its use of live fire, while the European Union and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres have called for an independent investigation.

Israel says its forces only open fire to stop attempts to damage the fence, infiltrations, bids to carry out attacks and at those seeking to harm soldiers.

It accuses Hamas, the Islamist movement that runs the Gaza Strip and with whom it has fought three wars since 2008, of seeking to use the protests to carry out violence.

Palestinians say protesters are being shot while posing no threat to soldiers.</s>Israel's military said Tuesday that soldiers heard in video footage cheering as a Palestinian is shot during Gaza border clashes will be disciplined.

The military said in a statement that an initial probe shows the video was taken in December during riots in which attempts were made to "sabotage the security fence" with Israel. Footage that emerged Monday appeared to show a soldier shooting a Palestinian near the Gaza fence as other soldiers are heard cursing the man and cheering when he falls.

The military said the man was a main instigator in the clashes and was shot in the leg and wounded after ignoring calls to halt.

The statement said the footage was not filmed by the Israeli sharpshooter but by a soldier from a different unit. It condemned the filming of the incident and the statements the soldiers made. It said the troops' behavior does not reflect the army's values and they will be dealt with "accordingly," without elaborating.

The event apparently took place well before the current campaign of mass protests being led by the Islamic militant group Hamas at the border that began March 30 in which 26 Palestinians have been killed.

Hamas, which rules Gaza, called for the protests to last until May 15, the anniversary of Israel's founding when Palestinians commemorate their displacement during the 1948 war over Israel's creation.

The group hopes the protests can create pressure to break a border blockade enforced by Israel and Egypt since 2007 when it took over Gaza, without having to succumb to demands that it disarm.

Israel has accused Hamas of using the recent protests as a cover for carrying out attacks and bringing infiltrators into Israel. It has said some of those at the border tried to damage the fence, planted explosives or hurled fire bombs.</s>JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel pledged disciplinary action on Tuesday over a soldier’s leaked video showing an army sniper targeting a Palestinian across the Gaza border fence to profane praise from an onlooker, but deemed the shooting itself to have been exemplary.

The 81-second clip surfaced on social media on Monday and led Israeli TV news, with one host calling it “disturbing”. Its release followed a surge in Palestinian protests at the Gaza border in which 30 demonstrators have been killed by the army.

In a statement summarising a preliminary investigation, the military spokesman said the incident took place took place on Dec. 22, amid Palestinian unrest at U.S. President Donald Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as the Israeli capital.

The Palestinian who was shot was suspected of organising a “riot, which included rock hurling and attempts to sabotage the security fence, and lasted about two hours,” the statement said.

The sniper fired at him once, wounding him in the leg, after warnings shots and orders to disperse went unheeded, it said, adding that the video was taken by a soldier from another unit.

“As for the unauthorised filming of an operational event, the distribution of the filmed material and the statements made there, it should be noted that these do not suit the degree of restraint expected of IDF (Israel Defence Force) soldiers and will be dealt with by commanders accordingly,” the statement said.

It was not clear how many soldiers might face disciplinary action, nor how harsh it might be. In the video, a voice can be heard saying, “Yes! Son of a bitch!” as the Palestinian, who appears to be standing motionless near the fence, is shot.

Remarking on the video on Tuesday, Israeli Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman told reporters: “The Gaza sniper deserves a decoration, and the photographer a demerit.”

The Israeli military has stationed sharpshooters to enforce a no-go zone near the border and stop Palestinian attempts to breach the fence during a protest that has been called “The Great March of Return”.

The demonstrations are expected to escalate ahead of the planned opening of a new U.S. embassy in Jerusalem on May 14, coinciding with Israel’s 70th anniversary celebrations.

The protesters are reviving a long-standing demand for the right of return of Palestinian refugees and their descendants to towns and villages from which families fled, or were driven out, when the state of Israel was created in 1948.</s>The Israeli military continues to face widespread questions and condemnation amid videos showing snipers killing unarmed Palestinians circulate on social media.

A video shared on Twitter Monday by a military correspondent for Israel's channel 10 news, showed an Israeli sniper shooting an unarmed Palestinian near the Israel−Gaza security barrier.

"Do you have a bullet in the chamber?" the commander is heard asking the sniper before he takes the shot. According to Israeli military protocol, soldiers need orders or permission from a brigade or battalion commander to target protesters.

After making a 'successful' shot, the sniper and the others beside him yell in celebration, calling the Palestinian man "a son of a bitch."

Another soldier is heard saying, "Wow, [he] shot him in the head."

A fellow accomplice who films the incident then exclaims "Of course I filmed it," in response to a question, before calling it "a legendary video."

"Yes!", "What a fabulous video," the others cry with joy, "he flew in the air."

The man is then seen carried away by Palestinians, however it is not known whether the Palestinian man was injured or killed by the shot.

In response to the shooting, the IDF told The Times of Israel on Monday that according to an initial investigation, the incident took place several months ago.

"In regards to the video currently circulating, the event depicted apparently occurred a number of months ago. The incident is being reviewed and will be thoroughly investigated," it said.

The incident comes after a Palestinian journalist wearing a flak jacket marked "press" and holding his camera was shot by Israeli forces in an exposed area just below the armpit.

The Israeli army declined to comment, saying it was reviewing the incident.

At least 31 Palestinians, including journalist Yaser Murtaja, have been killed by Israeli forces since March 30, when the demonstrations began, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.

The rallies are part of a six-week demonstration that will culminate on May 15, which will mark the 70th anniversary of Israel's establishment -- an event Palestinians refer to as the "Nakba" or "Catastrophe".

Demonstrators demand that Palestinian refugees be granted the "right of return" to their towns and villages in historical Palestine from which they were driven in 1948 to make way for the new state of Israel.</s>JERUSALEM (Reuters) - The Israeli military said on Monday that it was investigating a video that appears to show an Israeli army sniper shooting a motionless Palestinian across the border in Gaza, to whoops of excitement from the onlooker.

Israeli television channels broadcast the clip at the start of their primetime evening news bulletins - with one host describing it as "disturbing" - after it circulated widely on social networks.

 Its release comes after more than a week of daily protests by Palestinians at the Gaza-Israel border in which 30 Gazans have been shot dead.

 However, the Israeli military said that the clip might have been filmed months ago.

 The amateur-style video focuses through a lens or viewfinder on a person in the distance, beyond a wire fence, standing still and alone. A gun fires and the person falls to the ground.

 "Wow, what a video. Yes! Son of a bitch! What a video. Here, run to evacuate him," a voice says in Hebrew as people are seen running toward the person.

 In a tweeted statement, the military said: "With regard to the video of the soldiers at the Gaza Strip border - it was probably an event that occurred a number of months ago. The event will be investigated and examined thoroughly."

 Reuters was been unable to verify the source of the video, or its authenticity. 

 Ayman Odeh, a senior lawmaker from Israel's Arab minority, said it was "a clip that terrifies the soul, rejoicing over the taking of a life and what appears to be the execution of someone who endangered no one". He called for the shooter to be put on trial.

 The Israeli military has stationed sharpshooters to enforce a no-go zone near the border fence and stop Palestinian attempts to breach the border during a protest that has been called “The Great March of Return”.

 The protesters are reviving a long-standing demand for the right of return of Palestinian refugees to towns and villages from which their families fled, or were driven out, when the state of Israel was created.

 Protest camps have sprung up a few hundred meters inside the fence. But large groups of youths have ventured considerably nearer, burning tires and hurling stones.

 Israel says it has been warning Gazans for weeks not to approach the border fence, and accuses Hamas, the armed Islamist group that controls Gaza, of instigating the protests.

 Israeli officials have declined to specify exact distances that Palestinians must maintain from the fence.

 Maps of Gaza from recent years by United Nations humanitarian agencies indicate a “no-go zone” of up to 100 meters from the barrier, with limited access for farmers in some areas from 100-300 meters. 

 

 (Reporting by Ari Rabinovitch and Stephen Farrell; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
Israel launches an investigation into a video appearing to show soldiers cheering as a Palestinian man is shot by an Israeli sniper through the Gazan border fence.