for the performance of their duty,”42 which means that their use should follow
the principles of necessity and proportionality.
As mentioned above, a law enforcement officer can only kill if it is required
to save life, which would make the use of lethal force proportional; and only
if there are no other means available to prevent the threat to life, which
means lethal force is necessary.43 The principle of proportionality assesses
the amount of force that is permissible or reasonable to use for the objective
to be achieved. For example, the authorization by the Israeli authorities for
the Israeli forces to use live ammunition against youth throwing stones is not
proportional, as they are not posing a threat to life and therefore lethal force
is not justified.44 The necessity principle, on the other hand, establishes an
obligation to use the least amount of force necessary to stop that threat, and
only when other kinds of force are unavailable or have proven ineffective is
the use of lethal force allowed. This means that lethal force must always be a
measure that is used as a last resort and absolutely necessary to protect life.
Further, the Basic Principles limit the use of lethal force to three cases; selfdefense or the defense of others under imminent threat of death or serious
injury, prevention of perpetration of a crime involving grave threat to life, and
arrest of someone presenting a serious danger and resisting the authority, or
to prevent their escape.45
Israeli Policies and Practices
October 2015 and after
At the beginning of October 2015, Palestinian frustrations grew over
ongoing violations of their fundamental rights. This frustration was met
with a sharp increase in the illegal use of force and collective punishment
by Israel,46 which claimed to be responding to alleged attacks and protests
by Palestinians. These actions lead to an atmosphere of insecurity and
instability throughout Mandate Palestine. As of 30 September 2016,47 235
Palestinians had been killed at the hands of the Israeli army or Jewish-Israeli
42 Code of conduct, op. cit., Article 3
43 UN Special Rapporteur Philip Alston, op. cit. A/HRC/10/24/Add.6, page 11
44 A. Harel, Netanyahu Asks Attorney General to Authorize Sniper Fire Against Stone-throwers, Haaretz,
16 September 2015. Available at: http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-1.676190
45 Diakona, Law Enforcement under Occupation, op. cit., August 2015, page 6
46 “A punitive sanction inflicted on a group of persons without regard to individual responsibility for the
deed or event which provokes the penalty.” Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International
Law , Encyclopedia of Public International Law, Volume I, 2000, page 645
47 Chloe Benoist, Death in numbers: A year of violence in the occupied Palestinian territory and
Israel, Ma’an News Agency, 4 October 2016. Available at: http://www.maannews.com/Content.
aspx?id=773407
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