clashesGaza City, Jan 14 (AFP) Palestinian officials exhumed thebody of a disabled Gazan man today as part of efforts to proveIsraeli forces shot him in the head during recent protests andclashes.
"Ibrahim Abu Thurayeh's body was exhumed this morning foranother autopsy to refute Israeli claims that come as anattempt to evade their responsibility for this crime,"Mohammad Al-Najjal, the deputy justice minister in the GazaStrip, told AFP.
Najjal said the Palestinian authorities in Gaza decidedthat "in order to refute the occupation's claims, the bulletin his head must be presented to international parties," headded.
He said "the results of this autopsy will be presented tointernational parties including the ICC (InternationalCriminal Court)."It was unclear whether a full autopsy had been performedon Abu Thurayeh after his death on December 15 in thePalestinian enclave run by Islamist movement Hamas.
Israel's military said earlier this month it was openingan investigation into the death of the 29-year-old who,according to his family, had lost his legs in a 2008 Israelistrike.
Palestinian officials say the wheelchair-bound man wasshot in the head by an Israeli sniper during protests andclashes along the Gaza border on December 15.
The United Nations' human rights chief said he was "trulyshocked" by Abu Thurayeh's death and demanded an "independentand impartial investigation".
Israel's announcement that it was opening a probe intohis death came after the military previously said it was notable to determine whether he had been killed by its soldiers'fire.
AFP photographers have seen Abu Thurayeh at multipledemonstrations in recent years.
In video footage recorded the day he was killed, AbuThurayeh could be seen carrying the Palestinian flag andwaving the victory sign at Israeli soldiers across the border.
The protest on December 15 was part of unrest that hasoccurred in the Palestinian territories since US PresidentDonald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital.
Sixteen Palestinians have been killed since Trump'sDecember 6 announcement, most of them in clashes with Israeliforces. (AFP)KIS.
This is unedited, unformatted feed from the Press Trust of India wire.