10 oct 2019
Israeli author David Grossman
Some of the country's leading writers, entertainers, researchers and scientists seek amendment to controversial legislation so that it not only defines Israel as the nation state of the Jewish people but also as homeland of the minorities that live in it
A group of 40 of Israel's most prestigious writers, entertainers, researchers and scientists are planning to petition the Supreme Court against the controversial Nation-State Law, which critics say discriminates against the country's non-Jewish citizens.
Among the long and respected list of petitioners - all recipients of the Israel Prize - are writer David Grossman, actor and comedian Gavri Banai, educator Prof. Alice Shalvi, choreographer Ohad Naharin and artist Michal Na'aman.
The law, passed by the Knesset last year, defines Israel as the nation-state of the Jewish people and strips the Arabic language from its status as an official language alongside Hebrew, instead defining it as a language with "special status."
The petition aims is to see a special clause added to the legislation to protect the rights of minorities in Israel.
"Without the inclusion of minorities as part of the identity of Israel as the nation state of the Jewish people, the National-State Law is unconstitutional," says the petition.
The legislation caused a wave of protests within the Arab and Druze community.
Several petitions have already been filed against the law – but this one proposes a direct solution to the lack of mention of minorities.
The petitioners propose an additional clause be placed at the beginning of the law stating that "Israel is the national home land of the Jewish people" and that "it is the home land of all minorities who live within."
The group of laureates stress that a nation state bill cannot exist without the inclusion of the rights to which minorities are entitled.
They reference as an example the Croatian constitution, which states the it is the nation state of the Croatian people, but also the state of Muslims, Jews and all other minorities within it.
"Israel is the state of the Jews from a national standpoint, but from a civilian and judicial standpoint, it is also the state of the Druze, Bedouin and other citizens who live in it. More than two million citizens are not 'visitors' in the nation state of the Jews: they are part of this land and belong to it", says the petition.
David Harel, a professor at the Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel Prize laureate and Vice-President of the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities, said Saturday that: "The principle of equality among all citizens is not sacrosanct because of people's belief in it, rather it has been a cornerstone of democracy. When a legislation such is this passes, you automatically ignore 20 percent of the population and that is not democracy."
Sculptor Dani Karavan, another from the group of laureates, added: "I think it is my moral duty to join this petition. I believe in human rights within democracy, equality and I'm against discrimination.
"Anyone who fights for equality and human rights, I'm on his side. I'm filled with appreciation for the many young people who get up and fight not only for their rights, but for the rights of others."
Some of the country's leading writers, entertainers, researchers and scientists seek amendment to controversial legislation so that it not only defines Israel as the nation state of the Jewish people but also as homeland of the minorities that live in it
A group of 40 of Israel's most prestigious writers, entertainers, researchers and scientists are planning to petition the Supreme Court against the controversial Nation-State Law, which critics say discriminates against the country's non-Jewish citizens.
Among the long and respected list of petitioners - all recipients of the Israel Prize - are writer David Grossman, actor and comedian Gavri Banai, educator Prof. Alice Shalvi, choreographer Ohad Naharin and artist Michal Na'aman.
The law, passed by the Knesset last year, defines Israel as the nation-state of the Jewish people and strips the Arabic language from its status as an official language alongside Hebrew, instead defining it as a language with "special status."
The petition aims is to see a special clause added to the legislation to protect the rights of minorities in Israel.
"Without the inclusion of minorities as part of the identity of Israel as the nation state of the Jewish people, the National-State Law is unconstitutional," says the petition.
The legislation caused a wave of protests within the Arab and Druze community.
Several petitions have already been filed against the law – but this one proposes a direct solution to the lack of mention of minorities.
The petitioners propose an additional clause be placed at the beginning of the law stating that "Israel is the national home land of the Jewish people" and that "it is the home land of all minorities who live within."
The group of laureates stress that a nation state bill cannot exist without the inclusion of the rights to which minorities are entitled.
They reference as an example the Croatian constitution, which states the it is the nation state of the Croatian people, but also the state of Muslims, Jews and all other minorities within it.
"Israel is the state of the Jews from a national standpoint, but from a civilian and judicial standpoint, it is also the state of the Druze, Bedouin and other citizens who live in it. More than two million citizens are not 'visitors' in the nation state of the Jews: they are part of this land and belong to it", says the petition.
David Harel, a professor at the Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel Prize laureate and Vice-President of the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities, said Saturday that: "The principle of equality among all citizens is not sacrosanct because of people's belief in it, rather it has been a cornerstone of democracy. When a legislation such is this passes, you automatically ignore 20 percent of the population and that is not democracy."
Sculptor Dani Karavan, another from the group of laureates, added: "I think it is my moral duty to join this petition. I believe in human rights within democracy, equality and I'm against discrimination.
"Anyone who fights for equality and human rights, I'm on his side. I'm filled with appreciation for the many young people who get up and fight not only for their rights, but for the rights of others."
7 oct 2019
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Rita, a beautiful 8-year-old girl asks her mother to explain to her what does “critical condition” mean? Rita wanted to know more than what Wikipedia provides as definition of the word, as she tried to figure it out on her own.
This little girl was earlier informed of the reason her dad never came back to pick her up from school on September 25 and that he was taken to hospital and now “critical condition” is the description she hears about him. All she knows is that he was fine when he dropped her off at school on the morning of that day. Noura stares at her daughter’s face speechless, not being able to explain the meaning of the word to her. “I did not know what to tell her”; the words would not come out. |
In sincere prayers, several Palestinian churches held mass to pray for Samer Arbeed, the 44-year-old Palestinian from Ramallah who was kidnapped from his car on September 25th, 2019 by four armed Israeli men in front of his wife.
Since then Samer has not been seen by his family and is presently being hospitalized as a result of being severely tortured while in Israeli custody.
According to Israeli media, he is in “critical condition” and remains unconscious as of the writing of this statement. Also according to Israeli media, Samer is being kept alive by an artificial respirator, and suffers from broken ribs and kidney failure.
“Samer is a kind father and a devoted husband”. “He also takes care of his old mother and sick brother”, she spoke with eyes full of tears. He is also an active member in Palestinian NGOs one of which is the Civil Society Team for Enhancing Public Budget Transparency.
It is worth noting that Samer was arrested on August 26th, 2019 when heavily-armed Israeli soldiers raided his house late at night and abducted him in front of his wife and children. He was detained for nearly a week with no charges after which he was released by a court order.
His abduction on the 25th of September was just as abrupt and traumatic for the whole family with much more dire consequences and no end in sight.
Samer and Noura had dropped off their children to school and were on their way when they noticed that they were being followed.
As their car stopped, four armed men attacked Samer by harshly beating him on the neck and other parts of his body before kidnapping him. Two hours later, Noura was also taken and detained at an Israeli checkpoint near the town of Qalandia.
In addition, Israeli soldiers raided Samer and Noura’s house in their absence and wreaked their belongings.
“Only God and Israeli officials know what happened between the 25th until the 27th of September, the date Samer was transferred to the Hadassa Hospital and placed under strict security measures including being denied access to his lawyer”, Noura stated.
According to his lawyer, Samer began to experience severe chest pains and constant vomiting the following day after his arrest. He repeatedly made complaints to the judge, but was completely ignored by the Israeli court.
In regard to visitations: as for the writing of this statement, Samer’s wife, Noura continues to be denied visitation rights to see her husband even while in hospital. In addition, she says that his medical condition is being kept a secret,“The occupation is not allowing us to examine his medical condition and refuses to issue a medical report concerning his condition”.
Noura fears for her husband’s life and holds the Israeli authorities responsible. Her other fear is for her children who have been subjected to the brutal attack on their father by the Israeli occupation authorities.
Despite all of the above, she remains hopeful that justice will prevail and that her family will be reunited: “with all my heart, I pray that he will recover soon and come back home and be with his children”.
In this regard, we would like to call attention to Israeli policies concerning Palestinian detainees, and in particular to the Israeli court order granting the Israeli Security Agency, better known as Shabak, special permission to use “exceptional ways” (in other words, torture) when interrogating “special cases” of Palestinian detainees.
We also call on the international community to put pressure on Israel to end these practices that break the prisoner’s spirit.
This policy was applied not only on Samer Arbeed, but on a number of Palestinians who were arrested with no news about their status, and death was the end result at time.
According to the Palestinian Society Prisoner’s Club (NGO) 73 prisoners were killed due to torture in Israeli jails since 1967.
“For years, the Israeli establishment has tried to conceal what happens in interrogation rooms. When interrogators use torture – or “special means,” to use the establishment’s term – the concealment efforts are redoubled.
Even when testimony of torture reaches the public, the system does everything it can to leave the interrogators’ role in darkness, including signing lenient plea bargains with suspects who were tortured to ensure that the conspiracy of silence remains unbroken” as reported by Haaretz’s.
In 1999, the High Court of Justice banned torture, which was permitted until then.
But subsequent regulations issued by the Attorney General Elyakim Rubinstein legitimized using it with approval by senior officials.” An investigative report by Haaretz in May 2015 found that use of torture was on the rise.
The legally-sanctioned torture of Samer during interrogation further exposes the complicity of the Israeli authorities, including its judiciary, in a systematic violation of the human Right to be Free from Torture. “It is utterly outrageous that the use of torture during interrogations continues to be sanctioned by the Israeli authorities” as stated by Amnesty International.
Also, under international treaties, which legally bind Israel, “the use of torture is not to be justified under any circumstances”. Samer’s case is one example that shamefully exposes Israel’s judiciary’s claim of upholding human rights treaties”
Palestinian civil society and Human rights organizations issued an appeal to civil society organizations worldwide and international bodies, as well as to the UN Secretary General and other United Nations committees and agencies, to put greater efforts to end torture applied on Palestinians by the Israeli occupation.
The organizations also called for the immediate release of Samer Arbeed in addition to holding the Israeli occupation authorities accountable for all their crimes against Palestinians, as stipulated in Articles 146 and 147 of the Fourth Geneva Convention.
Written by: Hind Shreideh /wattan TV
Since then Samer has not been seen by his family and is presently being hospitalized as a result of being severely tortured while in Israeli custody.
According to Israeli media, he is in “critical condition” and remains unconscious as of the writing of this statement. Also according to Israeli media, Samer is being kept alive by an artificial respirator, and suffers from broken ribs and kidney failure.
“Samer is a kind father and a devoted husband”. “He also takes care of his old mother and sick brother”, she spoke with eyes full of tears. He is also an active member in Palestinian NGOs one of which is the Civil Society Team for Enhancing Public Budget Transparency.
It is worth noting that Samer was arrested on August 26th, 2019 when heavily-armed Israeli soldiers raided his house late at night and abducted him in front of his wife and children. He was detained for nearly a week with no charges after which he was released by a court order.
His abduction on the 25th of September was just as abrupt and traumatic for the whole family with much more dire consequences and no end in sight.
Samer and Noura had dropped off their children to school and were on their way when they noticed that they were being followed.
As their car stopped, four armed men attacked Samer by harshly beating him on the neck and other parts of his body before kidnapping him. Two hours later, Noura was also taken and detained at an Israeli checkpoint near the town of Qalandia.
In addition, Israeli soldiers raided Samer and Noura’s house in their absence and wreaked their belongings.
“Only God and Israeli officials know what happened between the 25th until the 27th of September, the date Samer was transferred to the Hadassa Hospital and placed under strict security measures including being denied access to his lawyer”, Noura stated.
According to his lawyer, Samer began to experience severe chest pains and constant vomiting the following day after his arrest. He repeatedly made complaints to the judge, but was completely ignored by the Israeli court.
In regard to visitations: as for the writing of this statement, Samer’s wife, Noura continues to be denied visitation rights to see her husband even while in hospital. In addition, she says that his medical condition is being kept a secret,“The occupation is not allowing us to examine his medical condition and refuses to issue a medical report concerning his condition”.
Noura fears for her husband’s life and holds the Israeli authorities responsible. Her other fear is for her children who have been subjected to the brutal attack on their father by the Israeli occupation authorities.
Despite all of the above, she remains hopeful that justice will prevail and that her family will be reunited: “with all my heart, I pray that he will recover soon and come back home and be with his children”.
In this regard, we would like to call attention to Israeli policies concerning Palestinian detainees, and in particular to the Israeli court order granting the Israeli Security Agency, better known as Shabak, special permission to use “exceptional ways” (in other words, torture) when interrogating “special cases” of Palestinian detainees.
We also call on the international community to put pressure on Israel to end these practices that break the prisoner’s spirit.
This policy was applied not only on Samer Arbeed, but on a number of Palestinians who were arrested with no news about their status, and death was the end result at time.
According to the Palestinian Society Prisoner’s Club (NGO) 73 prisoners were killed due to torture in Israeli jails since 1967.
“For years, the Israeli establishment has tried to conceal what happens in interrogation rooms. When interrogators use torture – or “special means,” to use the establishment’s term – the concealment efforts are redoubled.
Even when testimony of torture reaches the public, the system does everything it can to leave the interrogators’ role in darkness, including signing lenient plea bargains with suspects who were tortured to ensure that the conspiracy of silence remains unbroken” as reported by Haaretz’s.
In 1999, the High Court of Justice banned torture, which was permitted until then.
But subsequent regulations issued by the Attorney General Elyakim Rubinstein legitimized using it with approval by senior officials.” An investigative report by Haaretz in May 2015 found that use of torture was on the rise.
The legally-sanctioned torture of Samer during interrogation further exposes the complicity of the Israeli authorities, including its judiciary, in a systematic violation of the human Right to be Free from Torture. “It is utterly outrageous that the use of torture during interrogations continues to be sanctioned by the Israeli authorities” as stated by Amnesty International.
Also, under international treaties, which legally bind Israel, “the use of torture is not to be justified under any circumstances”. Samer’s case is one example that shamefully exposes Israel’s judiciary’s claim of upholding human rights treaties”
Palestinian civil society and Human rights organizations issued an appeal to civil society organizations worldwide and international bodies, as well as to the UN Secretary General and other United Nations committees and agencies, to put greater efforts to end torture applied on Palestinians by the Israeli occupation.
The organizations also called for the immediate release of Samer Arbeed in addition to holding the Israeli occupation authorities accountable for all their crimes against Palestinians, as stipulated in Articles 146 and 147 of the Fourth Geneva Convention.
Written by: Hind Shreideh /wattan TV
6 oct 2019
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Abu Hmeid family, living in the al-Am’ari refugee camp, south of the central West Bank city of Ramallah, was informed by the Israeli army that their home will be demolished within the coming week.
Latifa Abu Hmeid told the WAFA Palestinian News Agency that a military commander called her and informed her of the final decision to demolish her home, which was wired and detonated by the soldiers last year, and the family rebuilt it since then. She stated that the commander informed her “she can file an appeal against the demolition order,” but added that the family does not intend to |
do so, especially since Israeli courts hold mock trials in these cases, and rule in favor of their army.
Lotfiyya said that after the army wired and detonated their home in December of 2018, and that the family later started rebuilding their property, which is still under construction after the family built the first two floors and now rebuilding the third. The family home was demolished a total of five times to date.
She also said the commander told her the family’s land has been confiscated under military orders, and that it is not allowed to rebuild any destroyed property in the first five years following any demolition.
It is worth mentioning that Islam’s mother, 73 years of age, has a son, Abdul-Mon’em Abu Hmeid, who was killed by the army in 2002 in nearby Qalandia refugee camp, in addition to five other sons, imprisoned by Israel, four of them are serving life terms.
Her husband, Mohammad Yousef Abu Hmeid, died in December of 2014, without being able to visit with any of his detained sons, due to what Israeli called “security considerations.”
The army claims that one of her sons, Islam Abu Hmeid, 33, who was taken prisoner on June 6th, 2018, killed an Israeli soldier, identified Ronen Lubarsky, after dropping a slab on his head, on May 24th, during a military invasion into the refugee camp, causing a very serious injury resulting in his death on May 26th.
An Israeli court sentenced Islam to life in prison, in addition to a fine of 258.000 Shekels to be paid to the family of the slain soldier.
His brothers Nasser, 37, is serving seven life terms and fifty years in prison, Nasr, 35, is serving five life terms, Sharif, 29, is serving four life terms, and Mohammad, 24, is serving two life terms and 30 years in prison.
Lotfiyya said that after the army wired and detonated their home in December of 2018, and that the family later started rebuilding their property, which is still under construction after the family built the first two floors and now rebuilding the third. The family home was demolished a total of five times to date.
She also said the commander told her the family’s land has been confiscated under military orders, and that it is not allowed to rebuild any destroyed property in the first five years following any demolition.
It is worth mentioning that Islam’s mother, 73 years of age, has a son, Abdul-Mon’em Abu Hmeid, who was killed by the army in 2002 in nearby Qalandia refugee camp, in addition to five other sons, imprisoned by Israel, four of them are serving life terms.
Her husband, Mohammad Yousef Abu Hmeid, died in December of 2014, without being able to visit with any of his detained sons, due to what Israeli called “security considerations.”
The army claims that one of her sons, Islam Abu Hmeid, 33, who was taken prisoner on June 6th, 2018, killed an Israeli soldier, identified Ronen Lubarsky, after dropping a slab on his head, on May 24th, during a military invasion into the refugee camp, causing a very serious injury resulting in his death on May 26th.
An Israeli court sentenced Islam to life in prison, in addition to a fine of 258.000 Shekels to be paid to the family of the slain soldier.
His brothers Nasser, 37, is serving seven life terms and fifty years in prison, Nasr, 35, is serving five life terms, Sharif, 29, is serving four life terms, and Mohammad, 24, is serving two life terms and 30 years in prison.
2 oct 2019
Brutal treatment meted out to Samir Arbeed by Shin Bet agents has prompted strong condemnation from human rights campaigners
Last week, a Palestinian detainee arrested by Israeli occupation forces was admitted to a Jerusalem hospital suffering from severe injuries, including broken ribs and kidney failure.
Samir Arbeed, 44 and in good health when detained, had been tortured during his interrogation at the hands of Shin Bet agents. According to reports, the agents had been given permission by an Israeli “judicial body” to use “exceptional ways to investigate”.
The treatment meted out to Arbeed in custody has prompted strong condemnation from Palestinian and international human rights campaigners, with Amnesty International describing the “legally sanctioned torture” as “utterly outrageous”.
Systemic abuse
That reference to “legally sanctioned” is key. In its most recent annual report, Amnesty noted how “torture and other ill-treatment of detainees, including children, remained pervasive and was committed with impunity [by Israeli forces]”.
Other NGOs have documented the use by Israeli interrogators of physical violence, stress positions and sleep deprivation – methods deployed while the Palestinian prisoner is denied access to a lawyer. An academic study published in 2015 found that “sexual ill-treatment is systemic”.
In 2017, Haaretz reported on Israel’s torture methods as confirmed by interrogators themselves, and cited a piece published two years earlier that suggested the “use of torture was on the rise”.
Clearly, this is not just a case of “a few rotten apples”. In fact, the issue goes deeper than the actions of the individual agents, right to the heart of Israel’s institutionalised – and judicially rubber-stamped – violations of Palestinian rights and of international human rights norms.
In 1999, Israel’s top court famously ruled that Shin Bet agents could not use “physical means” against Palestinian prisoners – but that those who did so in the case of a “ticking bomb” situation would be immune from prosecution.
'Dangerous precedent'
As human rights NGO B’Tselem describes, Shin Bet agents thus continued to use methods “that constitute abuse and even torture … These methods were not limited to exceptional cases and quickly became standard interrogation policy.”
It gets worse. In December 2017, Israel’s Supreme Court rejected a petition brought by the Public Committee Against Torture in Israel (PCATI) on behalf of Palestinian prisoner Assad Abu Ghosh.
With the court taking “the state’s side on all of the key issues before it”, Judge Uri Shoham declared: “The definition of certain interrogation methods as ‘torture’ is dependent on concrete circumstances, even when these are methods recognized explicitly in international law as ‘torture’.”
The decision was slammed by the UN special rapporteur on torture as setting “a dangerous precedent” and “gravely undermining the universal prohibition of torture”.
Yet, more was to come. In a November 2018 ruling, Israel’s Supreme Court again gave its backing to the violent interrogation of Palestinian prisoner Fares Tbeish, stating that his torture by Shin Bet agents was not illegal and the perpetrators should not face prosecution.
A report in +972 Magazine described the ruling as having “broadened and effectively removed” even the limitations imposed in the 1999 court decision, with legal scholar Itamar Mann telling the news site that in the eyes of the High Court, physical abuse “is a legitimate and perhaps even the preferable way of carrying out an interrogation in cases of national security”.
Israeli impunity
It is no wonder, then, given the support for torture among Israeli officials and judges, that out of hundreds of complaints made against Shin Bet interrogators in recent years, not a single criminal investigation has been opened.
And it is in light of these precedents that one must view with scepticism the announcement by Israel’s Justice Ministry that it is launching an investigation into “potential wrongdoing” by Shin Bet agents in the case of Arbeed; no one is holding their breath for anything like meaningful accountability.
The impunity enjoyed by Israeli forces for the violent and degrading treatment of Palestinian prisoners makes international pressure and intervention essential.
On Tuesday, Palestinians protested at the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) offices in Ramallah, demanding that the body exercise its right to visit Arbeed.
Prisoners’ rights groups and the Palestinian health ministry delivered a letter to the ICRC expressing their collective concern, and the ICRC said on Wednesday that it was attempting to visit Arbeed “as soon as possible”.
The torture of Arbeed shines a light on yet another way in which Israel is singled out for impunity. An ally of Western states, which benefits from multiple bilateral and multilateral agreements in trade and defence, is openly torturing prisoners detained in occupied territory – with judicial backing.
Addameer has called on the UN and its bodies “to act immediately in actual attempts to hold the Israeli occupation authorities accountable for their crimes”.
This article is available in French on Middle East Eye French edition.
Ben White
Ben White is the author of ‘Israeli Apartheid: A Beginner’s Guide’ and ‘Palestinians in Israel: Segregation, Discrimination and Democracy’. He is a writer for Middle East Monitor, and his articles have been published by Al Jazeera, al-Araby, Huffington Post, The Electronic Intifada, The Guardian, and more.
Last week, a Palestinian detainee arrested by Israeli occupation forces was admitted to a Jerusalem hospital suffering from severe injuries, including broken ribs and kidney failure.
Samir Arbeed, 44 and in good health when detained, had been tortured during his interrogation at the hands of Shin Bet agents. According to reports, the agents had been given permission by an Israeli “judicial body” to use “exceptional ways to investigate”.
The treatment meted out to Arbeed in custody has prompted strong condemnation from Palestinian and international human rights campaigners, with Amnesty International describing the “legally sanctioned torture” as “utterly outrageous”.
Systemic abuse
That reference to “legally sanctioned” is key. In its most recent annual report, Amnesty noted how “torture and other ill-treatment of detainees, including children, remained pervasive and was committed with impunity [by Israeli forces]”.
Other NGOs have documented the use by Israeli interrogators of physical violence, stress positions and sleep deprivation – methods deployed while the Palestinian prisoner is denied access to a lawyer. An academic study published in 2015 found that “sexual ill-treatment is systemic”.
In 2017, Haaretz reported on Israel’s torture methods as confirmed by interrogators themselves, and cited a piece published two years earlier that suggested the “use of torture was on the rise”.
Clearly, this is not just a case of “a few rotten apples”. In fact, the issue goes deeper than the actions of the individual agents, right to the heart of Israel’s institutionalised – and judicially rubber-stamped – violations of Palestinian rights and of international human rights norms.
In 1999, Israel’s top court famously ruled that Shin Bet agents could not use “physical means” against Palestinian prisoners – but that those who did so in the case of a “ticking bomb” situation would be immune from prosecution.
'Dangerous precedent'
As human rights NGO B’Tselem describes, Shin Bet agents thus continued to use methods “that constitute abuse and even torture … These methods were not limited to exceptional cases and quickly became standard interrogation policy.”
It gets worse. In December 2017, Israel’s Supreme Court rejected a petition brought by the Public Committee Against Torture in Israel (PCATI) on behalf of Palestinian prisoner Assad Abu Ghosh.
With the court taking “the state’s side on all of the key issues before it”, Judge Uri Shoham declared: “The definition of certain interrogation methods as ‘torture’ is dependent on concrete circumstances, even when these are methods recognized explicitly in international law as ‘torture’.”
The decision was slammed by the UN special rapporteur on torture as setting “a dangerous precedent” and “gravely undermining the universal prohibition of torture”.
Yet, more was to come. In a November 2018 ruling, Israel’s Supreme Court again gave its backing to the violent interrogation of Palestinian prisoner Fares Tbeish, stating that his torture by Shin Bet agents was not illegal and the perpetrators should not face prosecution.
A report in +972 Magazine described the ruling as having “broadened and effectively removed” even the limitations imposed in the 1999 court decision, with legal scholar Itamar Mann telling the news site that in the eyes of the High Court, physical abuse “is a legitimate and perhaps even the preferable way of carrying out an interrogation in cases of national security”.
Israeli impunity
It is no wonder, then, given the support for torture among Israeli officials and judges, that out of hundreds of complaints made against Shin Bet interrogators in recent years, not a single criminal investigation has been opened.
And it is in light of these precedents that one must view with scepticism the announcement by Israel’s Justice Ministry that it is launching an investigation into “potential wrongdoing” by Shin Bet agents in the case of Arbeed; no one is holding their breath for anything like meaningful accountability.
The impunity enjoyed by Israeli forces for the violent and degrading treatment of Palestinian prisoners makes international pressure and intervention essential.
On Tuesday, Palestinians protested at the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) offices in Ramallah, demanding that the body exercise its right to visit Arbeed.
Prisoners’ rights groups and the Palestinian health ministry delivered a letter to the ICRC expressing their collective concern, and the ICRC said on Wednesday that it was attempting to visit Arbeed “as soon as possible”.
The torture of Arbeed shines a light on yet another way in which Israel is singled out for impunity. An ally of Western states, which benefits from multiple bilateral and multilateral agreements in trade and defence, is openly torturing prisoners detained in occupied territory – with judicial backing.
Addameer has called on the UN and its bodies “to act immediately in actual attempts to hold the Israeli occupation authorities accountable for their crimes”.
This article is available in French on Middle East Eye French edition.
Ben White
Ben White is the author of ‘Israeli Apartheid: A Beginner’s Guide’ and ‘Palestinians in Israel: Segregation, Discrimination and Democracy’. He is a writer for Middle East Monitor, and his articles have been published by Al Jazeera, al-Araby, Huffington Post, The Electronic Intifada, The Guardian, and more.
