An Israeli court on Thursday acquitted a police officer charged with reckless manslaughter in the killing of an unarmed Palestinian man with autism in 2020, just days after George Floyd was murdered by police officers in Minneapolis. The Jerusalem district court ruled that the officer was acting in self-defense when he shot and killed Iyad al-Hallaq, 31. A judge called it “an honest mistake,” ruling that the then-19-year-old officer, whose identity has not been made public, was acting in “good faith,” believing that al-Hallaq was “an armed terrorist.” Al-Hallaq was making his way to a special needs school in Jerusalem’s Old City when he was shot, according to the Middle East Eye. His father told The New York Times that the family was surprised by the decision. “The court basically told the police — do whatever you want to Arabs. You won’t get punished for it,” he said.
