Police violence (illustrative)
Police violence (illustrative)Israel news photo

Two policemen who were convicted for violently assaulting an innocent teenager should pay damages from their own pockets, state attorneys said Thursday. The officers should pay 80,000 shekels, they recommended.

Attorneys for the plaintiff were angered by the state's suggestion. While the two officers should pay a personal price for what they did, the police force as a whole should not escape unscathed, and should be forced to take responsibility for the incident as well, they said.

The state's proposal would punish the officers, but would leave the state and the Israel Police with no damages to pay.

The officers in question, Ori Hubar and Shmulik Ben-Hamo, were charged for the violent arrest of a Jewish teenager from Samaria more than five years ago. The officers encountered the teen at a hitchhiking post at the Tapuach Junction, where he and several others were waiting for rides.

The two asked those present to show their ID. While others displayed their cards, the boy explained that he did not have an ID card due to his age. Hubar and Ben-Hamo refused to believe him, and arrested him, handcuffed him, and slapped and kicked him.

Several people were witness to the violent arrest, including multiple IDF soldiers who were at the hitchhiking post. The soldiers tried to intervene in the beating, but were not successful.

The officers have been convicted and fined 1,200 shekels. An appeal they filed was rejected by a Jerusalem court.

The victim has filed a civil suit with the help of the Judea and Samaria Human Rights Organization. The beating caused the victim both physical and emotional trauma, and has left him with permanent disabilities, his lawyers say.