Video shows Israel paramedic tampering with crime scene

By Kaamil Ahmed

JERUSALEM (AA) – The knife allegedly used in an attempted stabbing attack by a Palestinian man who was shot dead by Israeli troops after being injured and disarmed was kicked closer to his body by an Israeli paramedic, according to video footage broadcast on Thursday by Israeli media.

The video, apparently taken by the paramedic himself, was obtained by Israel's Channel 2 television station and reportedly submitted as evidence at the trial of Elor Azaria, the soldier who shot 21-year-old Abdul-Fattah Sharif in the head in late March in the West Bank city of Hebron (Al-Khalil).

Azaria was charged with manslaughter after the shooting was caught on camera by a volunteer for Israeli human rights group B'Tselem.

The soldier claimed to have been acting in self-defense when he shot Sharif, who was already incapacitated.

Palestinians frequently accuse Israeli soldiers of planting knives or altering crime scenes when Palestinians have been shot after alleged attacks on Israeli soldiers or civilians.