An Israel Defense Force colonel in the West Bank has been severely reprimanded for brutality toward Arab villagers and will soon be relieved of his duties, it was announced here Wednesday.
Col. Yehuda Meir, former commander of the Nablus district, was reprimanded by the IDF chief of staff, Gen. Dan Shomron. Meir has been charged with exceeding his authority in incidents that occurred in two Arab villages last year.
In January 1988, he allegedly ordered soldiers to beat Arabs in Huwara and Beita villages. According to witnesses, four officers and more than 30 soldiers arrested 12 residents of Huwara.
They allegedly tied their hands and feet, shoved rags in their mouths and broke their arms and legs with clubs. The battered villagers were left in the orchard where the beatings took place.
A military police investigation, ordered in response to complaints from the International Committee for the Red Cross and a letter from an officer who took part in the incident, found that Meir had ordered the beatings.
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