The family of Iyad Hallaq, a 32-year-old autistic Palestinian man who was killed in May 2020, filed a petition to the Israeli Supreme Court against the acquittal of the Israeli officer who killed their son.

Adalah – the Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel – and the Meezaan Organization for Human Rights filed on Tuesday a petition to the Israeli Supreme Court, on behalf of the family of the late Iyad Hallaq, against the acquittal of the Israeli officer who killed their son.

Hallaq, a 32-year-old autistic Palestinian man, was shot dead by an Israeli Border Police officer in Jerusalem’s Old City on May 30 2020, while he was making his way to the special needs school.

Soon after the murder, Israeli reports falsely claimed that the autistic man was carrying a “suspicious object that looked like a pistol.”

Israeli Soldier Who Killed Palestinian Autistic Man in East Jerusalem Sentenced

Later, it was claimed, also by Israeli sources, that Hallaq was carrying a toy gun.

However, according to eyewitnesses, when Hallaq was shot and fell on the ground, he was merely holding his gloves and a face mask.

In October 2020, following a Police Investigation Department investigation, it was announced that the officer who shot Eyad would face reckless manslaughter charges.

Israel’s State Attorney Will Not Appeal Acquittal of Soldier Who Killed Autistic Palestinian Man

However, last July, the Jerusalem District Court fully acquitted the Israeli Border Police officer.

On September 4, 2023, the State Attorney’s Office informed Eyad’s family that it would not be appealing against the District Court’s ruling.

This is not the first case in which members of the Israeli occupation forces have been acquitted of the charges against them.

Recently, an Israeli court also decided to close the investigation file for the Israeli soldiers involved in the killing of elderly Palestinian-American, Omar Asaad, 80, from the village of Jaljalia, north of Ramallah.

(PC, WAFA)