Palestinians mourned Thursday the death of Ishaq Hassan, who was killed as he tried to wade across the Egyptian-Palestinian boarder into Egypt last week, shot allegedly by the Egyptian coast guard,.
Despite denying having information regarding the incident, the Egyptian authorities opened the Rafah border crossing to allow the body to be transferred to Gaza.
Hassan’s death sparked a wave of anger among Palestinians who accused Egyptian officials of “a cold blooded execution”, arguing that Hassan was mentally ill and posed no immediate threat to anyone as he was unarmed and naked when he was shot dead.
A video that captured the shooting went viral online before it passed through media outlets. In the footage, Hassan is seen running nude in the shallow surf of the Mediterranean Sea before he tries to cross a barbed-wire fence. Hassan crosses the border and disappears into the water. The Egyptian Coast Guard opens fire, spraying the sea with bullets. As the camera continues to roll, Egyptian forces pull Hassan’s lifeless body out of the sea and onto the beach.
Hassan’s family and friends organised a funeral for their late son, repeating chants similar to those said during funerals of young men killed during clashes with Israeli forces. The mourners also called for those responsible for Hassan’s death to stand trail in court.
