by Claire Evans

An Israeli soldier chased and assaulted a thirteen-year-old Palestinian youth by the Ibrahimi Mosque Gate on Saturday, 8 August, leaving red welts on his shoulder and back.  CPTers Paulette Schroeder and Claire Evans saw the soldier chase the boy and heard the boy's cries, after they passed through the Mosque Gate shortly after 5:00 p.m.  As the CPTers rounded the bend, they saw the boy crouched by the cement barrier wall, crying out.  The soldier's colleagues had by that time separated the angry soldier from the boy.

According to Palestinian shopkeepers across the street who had observed the incident, the boy had been selling a tray of fresh doughnut-like sweets (halabeyya), calling out to vend his wares.  The soldier had put his finger to his lips and said, "Shh," but the boy continued to call out.  Then the soldier started to chase the boy, who put his tray down and ran.  The soldier caught up with him, beat, and kicked him.  A blow came down on the boy's shoulder and back, causing large red welts.  See photos at http://cpt.org/gallery/13-year-old_Assaulted

The boy, accompanied by a young man, went to the Israeli police station at nearby Gutnick Center, but did not go inside to report the incident.  A few minutes later Schroeder explained to two Israeli police offers who were in a car heading out of the Mosque Gate what had happened. One of the police officers took the testimony of the shopkeepers and the boy and examined his wounds.  Two observers from TIPH (Temporary International Presence in Hebron) arrived on the scene and also took testimony.

The soldier's captain, summoned by the police, arrived at about 5:40 p.m., talked with the boy and the shopkeepers and examined the boy's injuries.  The boy's father arrived shortly thereafter and took the boy to the hospital, because he was obviously still traumatized by the incident.