Israeli army 'trigger happy'

A leading Israeli human rights group has accused the Israeli army of being "trigger-happy" in its operations in the Palestinian-controlled territories.

The B'Tselem organisation said that rules governing the army's use of live ammunition were dangerously vague and much of its use was unnecessary.

The group said the lack of clear rules of engagement had caused extensive injury to many Palestinians who were not involved in violence against Israel.

It also criticised the absence of investigations into army killings of Palestinians, and branded those that were undertaken as superficial and overly reliant on the soldiers' version of events.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service