Order to shoot bound man `behavior unfitting a commander`

Bethlehem - Ma'an/Agencies - An Israeli military court convicted for the second time a soldier and an officer filmed shooting a bound and blindfolded protester, the country's daily Haaretz reported on Thursday.

The Israeli human rights group B’Tselem responded to the news saying the new convictions were "important," but called on the military to "act to root out ill treatment."

Following an Israeli court reprimand that resulted in no disciplinary action, four rights groups petitioned for further action against Lieutenant Colonel Omri Burberg, who was filmed holding a blindfolded and bound prisoner and ordering Staff Sargent Leonardo Korea to fire a rubber bullet into the leg of 27-year-old Ashraf Abu Rahme, a Palestinian protester in the West Bank village of Nil'in.

The military court's second look at the case resulted in Military Advocate General Avichai Mandelblit adding attempted threat and behavior unfitting for a commander to the charges against Burburg, and illegal use of a weapon to the charges against Korea, Haaretz reported.

"The military must now act decisively and proactively to ensure that the far too common phenomenon of ill treatment of Palestinian detainees is not tolerated," B'Tselem said in a statement.

Following the release of the video used in the case against the soldiers, which was filmed by a young girl from Ni'lin, the girl's father has been twice detained and her family has suffered harassment.