The Israeli soldier who a few days ago shot and fatally wounded a three-year-old Palestinian who was riding in his father’s car, mistakenly believed that he was opening fire on gunmen. This was the conclusion reached by the committee that undertook the investigation of the incident that occurred on June 1.

Little Mohammed al-Tamimi was with his father in their car when they were shot by the soldier. The child was seriously injured in the head, while his father in the shoulder.

The three-year-old Palestinian was flown by military helicopter to a Tel Aviv hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries four days later.

In the conclusion of the Israeli army, it is pointed out that Palestinian gunmen had opened fire on guards in a Jewish settlement in the area, a short time before the tragic incident with the fatal injury of the child.

An officer investigating the area saw a “suspicious vehicle” and “fired multiple shots into the air.” A soldier reacted instinctively and opened fire on the Tamimi family’s car, mistaking it for the gunmen’s getaway vehicle. The committee blames unit leaders for poor communication and “incorrect decision-making,” noting that the officer who fired into the air was reprimanded for violating standing orders.

A report by the Israeli human rights group Yesh Din, citing data from 2017 to 2021, says prosecutions against Israeli soldiers account for less than 1 percent of the hundreds of complaints made over the same period of crimes against Palestinians.