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IDF Spokesman accuses far-left group B'Tselem of 'slander' against officers

After the organization published a video showing an IDF officer pointing his rifle at Palestinians, Maj. Gen. Moti Almoz said the incident was "provoked" and commended the officer's actions.

May 10, 2017, 7:12PM Omri Ariel

Screen Capture: B'Tselem/Channel 2 News

In an unusual move, IDF Spokesman Maj. Gen. Moti Almoz responded on Wednesday to a video recnetly published by the far-left group B'Tzelem, which shows an IDF officer pointing his rifle at Palestinians near the West Bank settlement of Yitzhar.

"You keep on making videos, supposedly in the name of freedom of expression, and we will continue to defend the citizens of Israel without dragging the IDF into political debates," Almoz wrote in a Facebook post after the video's publication.

"We don't always respond because often what you're looking for is free advertising, even if it means distorting the truth," said Almoz. "But there is an essential difference between filming an ongoing incident and provoking one by arriving to a location with a camera."

"The officer shown in the video acted as expected and has the full backing of his commanders," he concluded.

The organization said in response, "We wish to clarify that Palestinians don't 'arrive to a location with a camera', they live there. Unfortunately, the IDF spokesman's post proves that the state is interested in promoting the theft of lands and the illegal settlements while using the army to violate the Palestinians' human rights."