Excessive force: Five police officers indicted for throwing stun grenades at protesters

Five Israel Police officers were indicted for excessive force and are accused of throwing stun grenades into a crowd of protesters, against police protocol and resulting in injuries, the Police Investigation Department said Thursday.

The five are accused of throwing stun grenades into a crowd that was not violent towards police at that time.

The density of the crowd, which included children and elderly, as well as the constant movement of the crowd prevented the police from estimating where the stun grenade would land, said the indictment.

The accused officers also did not make use of alternate means of dispersal, with lesser risk of injury, said the indictment.

"The indictment is focused on two victims, where are the other five?" said the Legal Aid for Protesters organization, responding to the PID announcement and adding that they represent seven people who were harmed.

One complaint was thrown out and four other people are waiting for updates on their complaints, they added

National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir responded to the PID's announcement: "The decision to file an indictment against Superintendent Meir Suissa and other police officers is tainted by political motives and political pressure.

Throwing a grenade at protesters

In early March 2023, Israel Police Supt. Meir Suissa,  threw a stun grenade into a crowd of judicial reform protesters. The stun grenade injured nearby demonstrators, with one being evacuated for medical treatment due to concern that he may have lost his ear.

Following the incident, the protest organizers condemned the police, stating: "We must stop the coup d'état because if the laws of the dictatorship are passed, the violence against demonstrators will be a matter of routine if it will be possible to demonstrate at all."