An Israeli citizen who analyzed footage of the Jenin clashes has revealed that they were systematically edited in a biased fashion.
In a Thursday night expose, Danny Gallant explained that he reviewed both of the videos published, casting doubt on the claims of "execution."
One of the videos in question was filmed up close and the other from a distance.
"Execution? Not at all certain," Gallant wrote, emphasizing that this is a sensitive issue that requires careful examination, not sensationalism. He also stressed that there is no rush to draw conclusions against the Border Police officers involved in the incident.
In his analysis of the first video, he claimed that around the 26th second, a "jump in the frame" can be identified, indicating a rough cut and the removal of part of the footage. He re-edited the video and slowed down the frame rate to demonstrate the point of editing: "The cut is clearly visible," he wrote.
Regarding the second video, Gallant used a dedicated website for checking editing manipulations, which showed a 74% likelihood that the video had been edited, partly due to an unusual frame rate and internal inconsistency.
Gallant also referred to the media coverage of the incident by Qatar's Al Jazeera network, which aired a report featuring additional videos of Palestinian Authority Arabs surrendering to soldiers. Through a comparison he made using artificial intelligence, he claimed that the videos included in the report were entirely unrelated to the Jenin incident.
In conclusion, he wrote: "Bottom line, the videos from the Jenin incident were edited and manipulated in some way, so it is not possible to confirm or deny whether Border Police officers executed two Palestinian Authority Arab terrorists who surrendered and posed no threat. It is the duty of the IDF and Border Police to investigate the incident quickly, professionally, and impartially, and then publish their findings to the citizens of Israel and the entire world."
Meanwhile, Galei Tzahal military correspondent Doron Kadosh reported that the officers claimed during the inquiry that "When the terrorists came out, we began carrying out security clearance procedures on them (to ensure they did not pose a threat). We did not know if they were armed with a weapon or an explosive device."
"We began to give them orders to perform the clearance, and the terrorists acted contrary to what they were told. At a certain point, one of the terrorists decided to reenter the building, contrary to orders, and the other terrorist followed, and therefore they were both shot."
The officers were equipped with helmet cams, and the footage is being inspected. The investigation, for the time being, is not criminal and is being conducted by the commanders. The investigation of the incident will most probably be overseen by the new Military Advocate General, Itai Ofir.
Earlier on Thursday evening, during an Israel Border Police and IDF operation in the area of Jenin, the forces operated to apprehend wanted individuals who had carried out terror activities, including hurling explosives and firing at security forces.
The wanted individuals were affiliated with a terror network in the area of Jenin.
The forces entered the area, enclosed the structure in which the suspects were located, and initiated a surrender procedure that lasted several hours. Following the use of engineering tools on the structure, the two suspects exited.
Following their exit, fire was directed toward the suspects.
The incident is under review by the commanders on the ground, and will be transferred to the relevant professional bodies.