UMM AL-FAHM, Israel, Jan. 27 (UPI) -- No Israeli police officers will be indicted for their part in the deadly riots in the city of Umm al-Fahm, Attorney General Menachem Mazuz said Sunday.
An official legal opinion from Mazuz said that while 13 Arab civilians were shot and killed by Israeli forces during the October 2000 riots, he will not pursue charges any of the police officers involved, Haaretz reported.
Mazuz's ruling supports the findings of a 2005 investigation by the Police Investigations Department at the Justice Ministry, which called for the case to be officially closed.
The riots began after demonstrations at the city's entrance turned violent, leading Israeli police and security officials to shoot 12 Israeli Arabs and one Palestinian civilian.
Mazuz defended his decision not to seek indictments, saying "we had to take into consideration the fact that the incident involved the use of operational judgment in an emergency situation, under circumstances that don't justify the casting of criminal blame, as opposed to the taking of command procedures."
