Najjar’s killing was a shameful act

A SHAMEFUL war crime was committed by a cowardly and criminal sniper who saw a nurse with a white coat and pulled the trigger.

Razan al-Najjar was one of the few female medics responding to medical emergencies during the protests organised by Hamas, the group that controls Gaza.

“We have one goal: to save lives and evacuate people,” she said in a video. “And to send a message to the world: without weapons, we can do anything.”

Najjar was one of the hundreds of Palestinians killed since the protests began in March.

The aim of the protests is to draw attention to the 11-year blockade by Israel and Egypt of the coastal territory and to press refugee claims to lands taken by Israel when it was established in 1948.

Most of those killed during the protests have been shot by Israeli snipers, half in a single day, at the peak of the campaign. Israel is carrying out a murderous assault against protesting Palestinians, with its armed forces killing and maiming demonstrators who pose no imminent threat to them.

In most of the fatal cases, victims were shot in the upper body, including the head and the chest, some from behind.

Video and photographic evidence suggest that many were deliberately killed or injured while posing no immediate threat to the Israeli soldiers.

For four weeks the world has watched in horror as Israeli snipers and other soldiers, in full protective gear and behind the fence, have attacked Palestinian protesters with live ammunition and tear gas.

Despite wide international condemnation, the Israeli army has not reversed its illegal orders to shoot unarmed protesters. Bullets, tank fire and tear gas met stones and unarmed protesters.

Why are we silent yet again? How many times can we turn our heads and pretend we don’t see? RAZIA KHAN Durban