Solomon Tekah: Can Ethiopian Israelis get justice?

On Thursday, July 11 at 19:30 GMT: 
Widespread protests erupted in Israel last week after an off-duty police officer fatally shot Solomon Tekah, an Israeli teenager of Ethiopian descent, in the northern city of Haifa.

The officer says he intervened after encountering a brawl between two teens who then hurled stones in his direction. Fearing his life was in danger, he says he fired his gun at the ground. On Monday, the Justice Ministry’s Internal Investigations Department confirmed a bullet is believed to have ricocheted, striking Tekah in the chest, killing him.

Thousands took to the streets in protest,  with demonstrators blocking major road junctions across the country. Israeli media reported that at least 110 police officers were wounded and 136 protesters arrested over three days of protest.

Police say it’s unlikely the officer will be charged with manslaughter. Protesters have said they will continue demonstrating until justice is served. They believe the incident is part of a pattern of police violence against Ethiopian Israelis and that the incident highlights a wider issue of racially profiling Ethiopian communities.

This is not the first time Ethiopians have faced police violence. Protests broke out in 2015, after an Ethiopian-Israeli soldier was assaulted and beaten by Israeli officers in a seemingly unprovoked incident. And more recently, Yehuda Biadga, a 24-year-old with mental health issues was shot and killed by police.

There are 150,000 Jews of Ethiopian descent in Israel, many of whom are the children of those who immigrated in the 1980s and 1990s.

We’ll discuss how Ethiopian Israelis are navigating what they see as an atmosphere of brutality and violence in their encounters with Israeli police.

Read more: 
Ethiopian Jews protest after Israeli policeman kills teen – Al Jazeera
Ethiopian-Israelis Protest for 3rd Day After Fatal Police Shooting – NYTimes
Tekah Family: ‘our Cry Will Be Heard From The Ends Of This Land’ – Jerusalem Post
‘Mother, Don’t Let Me Be the Next Victim’: Protests Resume Over Police Shooting of Ethiopian Israeli – Haaretz