Video shows asylum seeker attacked by Israeli mob untreated for 18 minutes

Eighteen minutes passed before an Eritrean asylum seeker, beaten and shot in an Israeli bus station last October, received medical treatment, footage released on Monday by Israeli daily Haaretz shows. 

Haftom Zarhum, who was mistaken for the accomplice of a Palestinian attacker who shot a soldier and wounded 10 others, later died of his wounds at a nearby hospital.  

The Palestinian, identified as 19-year-old Muhannad al-Okbi, was shot dead by security officials at the station. As gunshots rang out, bystanders and policemen mistakenly thought Zarhum was helping Okbi.

The 29-year-old, who had been in Israel for three years and working at a garden centre, was shot by the station’s security officer before a crowd of people proceeded to beat him up for more than 15 minutes. He was kicked in the head several times and had a bench and several chairs thrown at him.

The mob attack was captured on security cameras and shows at least nine people - civilians, soldiers and uniformed and plainclothes security officials kicking and beating him up with their legs and rifle butts.

During the commotion, the video shows, Okbi fired several more shots and security officers rushed toward the source of the sound. However, as Zarhum lay lifeless and bloodied on the ground, the thinning crowd continued to attack him.

The clip shows that Magen David Adom emergency services staff did not immediately evacuate Zarhum, who was left for a total of 18 minutes before he received help.  He was taken to Soroka hospital where he was later pronounced dead.

Since the 18 October attack, only four of the nine people allegedly involved in Zarhum's beating have been charged. According to a court indictment, cited by Haaretz, the four caused severe bodily injuries to Zarhum, including a broken nose.

Zarhum died from eight gunshot wounds shot by three different people, a forensics analyst told Haaretz. 

Zarhum was on his way home after applying for an extension to his visa.