Israeli soldier kneels on 65-year-old Palestinian man's neck in scene compared to George Floyd killing

An Israeli soldier has been filmed kneeling on the head of a 65-year-old Palestinian man, in a scene that has been compared to the killing of Black American George Floyd by a police officer earlier this year.

The video shared by activists shows the injured Palestinian man, named as Khairi Hannoun, pinned to the floor by Israeli soldiers during a protest near the occupied West Bank town of Tulkarem.

An Israeli soldier is seen kneeling on the 65-year-old protester's head, echoing the chilling image of George Floyd whose death in a similar position in May sparked global protests against racism.

— Husam Zomlot (@hzomlot) September 1, 2020" style="color:#fff;" class="twitter-post-link" target="_blank">Twitter Post Today in Tulkarim/Palestine, yesterday in Minneapolis/USA. Two victims one struggle!#blm #blacklifematters #BLMUK #FreePalestine pic.twitter.com/YOHacbDZqU — Husam Zomlot (@hzomlot) September 1, 2020

Hannoun said that he only suffered some bruising from the violent arrest and that he was later released by the Israelis.

"The Israeli soldiers hit me hard and one of them pressed his knee against my neck for a few minutes," he told AP. "I stayed still to avoid more pressure on my neck, but people pulled me out." Hannoun said the incident began after he shoved an Israeli soldier who pointed his rifle at protesters.

Israel defended the soldier who knelt on the Hannoun's soldier, saying he had "showed restraint" and that the video of the incident had been "heavily edited".

The demonstration was organised to protest plans for an Israeli industrial park to be built near the occupied West Bank city.

Palestinians have compared the incident to the death by asphyxia of Floyd after Minnesota white police officer, Derek Chauvin, knelt on the man's neck for nearly nine minutes despite his pleas that he couldn't breathe.

Activists shared the image along with the hashtags #BLM #BlackLivesMatter and #FreePalestine.

Human rights groups say that Israel frequently deploys violent tactics and intimidation to suppress peaceful Palestinian protests in the West Bank, which has been illegally occupied since 1967.