A street art performance was carried out in Rabin Square Tuesday night by the friends of the late Ahuvia Sandak who was killed by police during a car chase last week. A giant image of Ahuvia was placed in the center of the square, with a slogan demanding “External Commission of Inquiry Now” posted below.
The protesters whitewashed the youth’s picture slowly until his face was completely covered, to illustrate how the investigation of his death was being covered-up and muted.
One of the organizers said, “We came to illustrate the injustice against Ahuvia and the entire public. A boy is killed by police and the police are just busy whitewashing and hiding this. At first they said he was killed in a self-inflicted accident, but we managed to expose the fact that the patrol car rammed him, and the cops weren’t questioned for three days! They had all the time in the world to coordinate their testimonies and hide whatever needed hiding, it’s a scandal.”
He added: “We call for the establishment of an external commission of inquiry that will not be infected by anything and will be able to reveal what really happened to Ahuvia without trying to whitewash his death.”
The protesters also demanded the establishment of an external commission of inquiry for the general conduct of the Judea and Samaria police. “Ahuvia was not killed in a vacuum,” the organizer said. “There’s a police unit here that’s above the law, they have been abusing settlers for years, acting out of hatred. This is not how the police should be, they must be dismantled.”
Passersby were interested in the performance and the story and asked Ahuvia’s friends for more details about the crime.
Meanwhile, on Tuesday, demonstrations in support of an outside inquiry took place throughout the country as well as in front of the Israeli consulate in New York. Demonstrations took place in Jerusalem, Kfar Chabad, Ariel, Sderot, Gesher Bar Ilan in Ramat Gan, Kedumim, Yitzhar Junction, Tsfat, Rechelim Junction, and Kiryat Arba. More than 40 protesters were arrested. In Jerusalem, the police prevented demonstrators from getting off the buses, in clear violation of the law. Attorneys for the Honenu legal aid society assist and represent the detainees.
