(Insert: I'm experiencing blogger delay syndrome, which may be delaying the posting process- but I don't know what you all can see that I don't.)


Floating ideas. That's all I'm doing, as it seems that's what the BBC is doing with this report about the killing of a young Palestinian who seems to be have been shot by Israeli troops while playing with a toy gun. I say 'young', rather than 'boy', because the report can say only that he was '13 or 14'. I say 'seems', because the Israeli spokesman is quoted saying only that Israeli troops shot a suspected gunman. The only sources for the gun being a toy seem to have been Palestinian- although the nationalities of what they call 'witnesses' are not mentioned by the BBC.

I don't know about you but I was long past playing with toy guns when I was thirteen, and as we know how prevalent weapons are even among young Palestinian people it seems very strange anyone would want a toy one when he could have the real thing. Even allowing for that, the BBC should really make clear that when the Palestinians talk of 'toy guns' they may really mean replicas- which seem designed to give a vicarious thrill of 'militantism' (yeah, right). Strange too that he'd take a 'toy gun' along in a crowd in this way when many of his peers, there is no doubt, are sufficiently weaponised to know the significance of such an act. The recklessness of youth perhaps. Very reckless if so.

I also notice that the medical sources apparently knew what the boy had had for his birthday, and that the witnesses were witnesses to his birthday present as well as his death. Family perhaps, or close friends- but they couldn't give his exact age to the journalist, presuming an interview took place somewhere down the line. Even then possibly that ought to be mentioned by the report- as I am sure that's the kind of thing any court would like to know, and this is the court of public opinion the BBC are addressing.

It is of course possible to imagine scenarios when all the the above could be explained without questioning the veracity of the details of the story, but I wouldn't accept it without a good explanation- which the BBC doesn't provide.

Finally I'd say that the whole incident is so understandable from a military point of view (even the police in the UK have been similarly fooled, if such is the case), that I fail to see, almost, why the unfortunate death of one young person should be front page news at all.

Update: This might be a related theme.

Here is the text as it appeared to me (I am reproducing it here in case my views are undercut by subsequent stealthy edits).


'Israeli soldiers have shot dead a Palestinian boy who was playing with a toy rifle, after apparently mistaking him for a gunman.
Troops patrolling Tubas, a West Bank village near Jenin, fired at the boy, aged 13 or 14, after he aimed the toy weapon at them, witnesses said.

He was with a group of children who were taunting the soldiers.

An Israeli military source confirmed troops had opened fire on a crowd after spotting what appeared to be a gunman.

Palestinian medical sources said the boy, Salah Ikhab, died in an ambulance on his way to hospital after being shot in the chest.

Witnesses and medical sources told the AFP news agency the boy had been given the toy as a present for the Eid holiday.

Israeli troops in Gaza also shot and killed a 13-year-old boy, Salah Abu Alaes, as he was walking with his family near the entrance to Rafah's sprawling refugee camp, Palestinian hospital officials said.

The officials were not able to give details on the circumstances of the shooting and the Israeli army had no immediate comment.

The incidents came as Israeli military chiefs met Palestinian security officials to discuss ways to avert a major military offensive in the Gaza Strip, in response to attacks on Israelis.'