B'Tselem report: Crowd Control: Israel's Use of Crowd Control ...

Live Ammunition“Ordinary” BulletsLive ammunition is the most lethal means used by security forces at West Bankdemonstrations. Soldiers operating in the West Bank are usually equipped withone of two kinds of personal weapons: A “Tavor” or one of several models of theM4 assault rifle (“shortened M16”). These rifles fire 5.56mm-caliber bullets.According to both the open-fire regulations and statements by military officials,use of live ammunition in the course of law enforcement activities (such as thedispersal of demonstrations) in the West Bank is prohibited, with the exceptionof firing in the air under certain circumstances. The Israeli military’s standingorders explicitly state that live ammunition may not be fired at stone-throwers.A person throwing stones may be detained under standard arrest procedureonly if the assailant poses an immediate threat to the physical wellbeing ofthe soldier or of another person. Only under circumstances of real mortaldanger may live ammunition be fired at the body of the assailant, in order toeliminate the danger. 63 The 2006 Soldier’s Open-Fire Regulation Card for Judeaand Samaria, intended to help memorize the open-fire regulations, states thatin case of violent rioting by the Separation Barrier, when there appears to bea real threat of damage to, or breaching of, the barrier, and when less severemethods have proven ineffective, the commander of the force may, as a lastresort, authorize the firing of single shots of live ammunition at the legs ofthose people identified as central agitators. 64Even so, security forces sometimes fire live ammunition during demonstrations,particularly at Palestinians who are throwing stones at them. Over the past63 Instruction 8, Open Fire Regulations for Soldiers in Judea, Samaria and the Gaza Strip, January 2012, § 8[Hebrew].64 General Staff \ Operations Directorate, Central Command, “Open- Fire Regulations Card for Judea andSamaria,” July 2006, XII.3.b. The card has different open-fire regulations for demonstrations in which there areIsraelis demonstrators, and states that “in case of violent disturbance of the peace with the participation ofIsraelis [emphasis in original], no use shall be made of live ammunition (including firing in the air) or rubberammunition, for the dispersal of the violent disturbance of the peace, with the exception of a case of realand immediate danger to life” (§ 6). In practice, these directions are apparently not implemented.29