Israel court rejects ban on French TV crew

AFP, July, 2008

JERUSALEM (AFP) — Israel's top court on Tuesday rejected a petition to revoke the accreditation of a French television team, accused of staging footage of the alleged killing of a 12-year-old Gaza boy by Israeli soldiers at the beginning of the Palestinian uprising in 2000.

"Such a measure can only occur in extreme cases that threaten state security," Supreme Court president Dorit Beinish said in her ruling. She added that the ruling did not imply any judgement about the TV report's accuracy.

The case revolves around footage broadcast in September 2000, when Mohammed al-Dura, 12, and his father Jamal are seen crouching in fear on a Gaza street after being caught in crossfire between Palestinian militants and Israeli troops.

The report then shows the boy...