07 Jan 2019; MEMO: A snake was slipped into a Palestinian family’s car by an Israeli soldier during a routine search of the vehicle in the West Bank, the Jerusalem Post has reported. The soldier stopped Nidal Sayid while he was driving with his family in his taxi at a checkpoint located at the Beit Furik junction in eastern Nablus, and apparently slipped a snake inside a bottle into the vehicle.
Following an indication by the soldiers at the checkpoint that he had passed the search, Sayid continued on his journey. He then heard his family crying that there was a snake in the car and he should stop, which he did immediately.
The incident was reported to the Palestinian authorities who contacted the Israel Defence Forces after a brief search of the vehicle was conducted to make sure there were no other unwanted passengers. After an investigation by the IDF, the soldier responsible was sentenced to 18 days detention.
Israeli occupation forces routinely kill and injure Palestinians with live fire and rubber bullets, or through assaults at checkpoints, during detention raids or when suppressing protests. Despite such violations, soldiers and police officers rarely face legal action. Even when they do, they typically receive lenient sentences.
Last month, five Palestinian workers were injured after Israeli soldiers opened fire on them near the separation wall in the occupied northern West Bank city of Tulkarem. Soldiers manning a checkpoint shot tear gas into the large crowd who were attempting to get to work, causing dozens of others to suffocate from excessive gas inhalation.
There are approximately 600 fixed and flying checkpoints in the occupied West Bank, as well as settler-only roads and various other physical obstructions which inhibit free movement for the Palestinians.
