AhlulBayt News Agency: Families of the two Palestinian men, who died off the coast of occupied Jaffa, say Israeli maritime police intentionally killed them instead of rescuing them from drowning.
Relatives of the victims, identified as Ameen Khalil Zaarour and Baha Shweiki, said the young men were hit by the propeller of the Israeli police boat on August 16.
The boat's propeller also injured two other young men, the families added.
They also said that they had called for an investigation into the incident and refused to sign documents that would allow the police to evade accountability for the murders.
Eyewitnesses said the tragedy began when the Palestinian men, all part of the same family from East al-Quds, entered the water, but were swept away by high waves and turbulent winds.
The Israeli maritime police ignored calls for help for nearly 15 minutes, and when they finally approached, they sped their boat toward the struggling swimmers.
“The boat struck Ameen and Baha,” said Ibrahim Shweiki, the victims’ uncle. “They (the policemen) could have saved them, but they killed them instead.”
Photos and video footage of the victims’ bodies show deep marks from propellers on their legs and hands.
Survivors testified that the Israeli police pushed them back into the water, with one of them saying he was beaten and thrown into the spinning propellers as he tried to climb aboard the boat.
“These were young men crying for help. Instead of saving them, the police used their boat as a weapon,” Shweiki pointed out. “This was murder and cruelty.”
Israeli media reported that the regime's Justice Ministry is looking into the circumstances that led to the killing of the two drowning Palestinians.
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