According to Haaretz, the Israeli Justice Ministry has closed the case in which a Lebanese journalist was wounded by a stun grenade hurled at her by an Israeli policeman. The alleged justification for closing the case is that the ministry was unable to identify the specific policeman responsible. The incident occurred in East Jerusalem’s Isawiyah neighborhood in October 2015. Hana Mahameed, a journalist who works for the Lebanese television station Al Mayadeen, was covering the demonstration outside the home of Fadi Alloun, who was shot to death after stabbing and moderately wounding a 15-year-old Israeli boy. As she was working, she was suddenly hit by a stun grenade.  The incident was captured on camera by a Palestinian television station, and the live broadcast caused uproar in the Arab world.

Video footage: Hana Mahameed returned to reporting for the Lebanon-based Mayadeen TV with bandages covering the parts of her face burned by a stun grenade.

Afterward, Hadash MK Yousef Jabareen (Joint List) filed a complaint on Mahameed’s behalf to the Justice Ministry department that investigates police malfeasance. “Mahameed was wearing a helmet and a fluorescent vest that clearly indicated her identity as a journalist during this incident,” Jabareen wrote. “Therefore, it wasn’t possible mistake her identity. She was standing together with a group of other journalists and media outlet personnel behind the policemen and covering the police force’s entry into the neighborhood.”

“The footage clearly shows that the throwing of the grenade was unnecessary and didn’t serve any operational need,” the complaint continued. “Moreover, it was in complete violation of the law, court rulings and even the police’s internal directives.” But in late May, the Justice Ministry informed Jabareen that it was closing the case. “Unfortunately, and despite our efforts, we were unable to identify the perpetrator of the crime against the complainant,” the Justice Ministry wrote. “Under these circumstances, there is no choice but to close the case on the grounds of ‘perpetrator unknown.'”

Mahameed said she wasn’t surprised by this decision, as it “fits with the police’s policy of turning a blind eye to cases of injury to journalists who expose the abuses of the Israeli occupation.”

Video: Hana Mahameed suddenly hit by a stun grenade