Israeli soldier filmed pushing disabled Palestinian from wheelchair after shooting

Israeli police on Monday launched an investigation into video footage showing an Israeli soldier tipping over a Palestinian in a wheelchair in the West Bank's Hebron city, officials told Xinhua.

The incident occurred on Sunday evening, moments after a Border Police force shot and critically injured 14-year-old Yasmin Rashad al-Zarou following an alleged attempt to stab soldiers.

Several locals gathered at the site to offer the girl emergency medical care and were pushed back by the soldiers, the footage shows.

One of the soldiers then shoved a disabled man off his wheelchair. The man flipped over, and his head hit the pavement. Other Palestinians approached, and another soldier was seen kicking away one of them. The soldiers then threw a stun grenade, dispersing the crowd.

Al-Zarou was later taken to the Shaarei Zedek Medical Center in Jerusalem, where she still remains.

The footage, which went viral, was originally released by Shehab, a Gaza-based Palestinian news agency.

Police spokeswoman Luba Samri told Xinhua that "upon receipt of the video footage, the material was sent to the police's internal affairs department, which opened an investigation."

After the incident, the Border Police released a statement saying that clashes ensued in the area between Palestinian protestors and Israeli security forces, with police using riot-dispersal means to take control of the situation.

According to Palestinian media, eyewitnesses said al-Zarou was seen unarmed before she was shot.

The incident was the latest in a five-month-long wave of violence. Many of the stabbing, car-ramming, and shooting attacks by Palestinians took place in the Hebron area, a flashpoint city where 850 Jewish settlers live under heavy Israeli guard, surrounded by tens of thousands of Palestinians.

On Saturday, 18-year-old Kilzar al-Eweiei was shot dead after she allegedly pulled out a knife near the same checkpoint.

On Sunday, Israeli soldiers shot dead five Palestinian teenagers near Jenin in the northern West Bank, at a checkpoint outside Jerusalem, and in East Jerusalem. Israeli military and police spokespersons said the killings occurred in response to attacks or to thwart attacks.

Israel has been accusing the Palestinian Authority of fueling the violence with "incitement" against Israel while the Palestinians say it is the result of 49 years of Israeli occupation of their lands. Endit