Israel closes case on Palestinian boy, 9, shot in eye during protest

Justice ministry says it could not be determined if sponge-tipped bullet or stone wounded boy in occupied West Bank

Nine-year-old Palestinian boy Malik Eissa rests in Hadassa hospital in Jerusalem in February this year. AP Photo

Israel's internal affairs department said it would not prosecute police officers involved in an alleged shooting with a sponge-tipped bullet that took out the eye of a Palestinian boy.

The family of Malek Issa, 9, who now has a glass eye, said the boy was hit by a non-lethal round used for crowd control in February while he was buying a sandwich in the Issawiya neighbourhood in East Jerusalem.

Police at the time said they were responding to a riot in the area.

The Israeli Justice Ministry said that after an exhaustive investigation, its internal affairs department "concluded there was not sufficient evidence to press criminal charges", AFP reported.

It said the police suspected of firing the round had "encountered resistance that included throwing stones" while on their way to make an arrest.

"During the activity, a sponge bullet was fired toward a wall, which was not close to where the boy was standing," the ministry said in the decision.

It said a medical investigation could not rule out the possibility that Malek lost his eye "from a stone and not the sponge bullet".

While the force was cleared of criminal responsibility, the internal affairs department called for a police inquiry into the incident, "including regarding the use of a sponge rifle during operational activity near civilians", the ministry said.

"This is a serious and saddening incident that took place during operational activity," it said.

On Thursday, the police’s internal investigations unit announced it had closed its investigation into the serious injury of Malek.

“The Police Internal Investigations Department came to the conclusion that there is no substantial evidence to warrant prosecution,” it said.

On Friday, a Palestinian teenager was killed in on the sidelines of a protest in the occupied West Bank, the Palestinian Health Ministry said.