11 dec 2019
The Israeli occupation forces (IOF) on Wednesday afternoon arrested a number of Palestinian workers near a separation wall gate in Qaffin village, north of the West Bank city of Tulkarem.
Local sources told the PIC reporter that the IOF arrested six Palestinian workers while they were attempting to enter the Palestinian territories occupied since 1948 through a gate in the separation wall.
This came a few hours after a Palestinian workman was shot and injured by IOF soldiers in the same place, the local sources added.
The detainees were transferred to a nearby Israeli military camp.
Dozens of Palestinian workmen have been shot or arrested by the IOF since the start of 2019 on their way to the 1948 occupied territories for work.
Local sources told the PIC reporter that the IOF arrested six Palestinian workers while they were attempting to enter the Palestinian territories occupied since 1948 through a gate in the separation wall.
This came a few hours after a Palestinian workman was shot and injured by IOF soldiers in the same place, the local sources added.
The detainees were transferred to a nearby Israeli military camp.
Dozens of Palestinian workmen have been shot or arrested by the IOF since the start of 2019 on their way to the 1948 occupied territories for work.
Israeli occupation intelligence, on Monday evening, delivered the Jerusalem governor, Adnan Ghaith, a decision issued by the Minister of Internal Security, Gilad Erdan, to prevent him from holding meetings, seminars and activities inside the occupied city of Jerusalem, for a period of six months.
The decision included preventing Governor Ghaith from collecting and providing financial aid to individuals and affected people, not holding organizational meetings, and not conducting meetings and seminars inside Jerusalem.
Occupation intelligence stormed the house of Governor Ghaith in the town of Silwan, south of Al-Aqsa Mosque, and handed him the decision and a summons to investigate Al-Maskoubiya detention center, PNN reports.
The decision included preventing Governor Ghaith from collecting and providing financial aid to individuals and affected people, not holding organizational meetings, and not conducting meetings and seminars inside Jerusalem.
Occupation intelligence stormed the house of Governor Ghaith in the town of Silwan, south of Al-Aqsa Mosque, and handed him the decision and a summons to investigate Al-Maskoubiya detention center, PNN reports.
(Photo courtesy of Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities)
Israeli occupation authorities, Tuesday, notified a Palestinian school in the town of Samou, to the south of Hebron, to stop working, claiming that it has been constructed in an area which threatens archaeological sites.
Palestinian Ministry of Education said, in a statement, that Israeli occupation authorities notified for the cessation of work in the Simaya elementary school, affiliated with the Directorate of Education, to the south of Hebron, located in Al-Samou area.
The Ministry noted that the Israeli step is a part of a campaign against the school and dozens of other schools, under fake pretexts.
The step threatens Palestinian students’ right to education, a right which is guaranteed by all international laws, charters and customs.
Al Ray further reports that the move coincided with the International Day for Human Rights, revealing Israel’s oppressive agenda and its continued violation of the rights of the Palestinian people, especially the right of students to education.
The school serves more than 40 students in the targeted areas that are subject to Israeli aggression.
In related news, Palestinian students on a field trip, today, at the Sebastia archaeological site, in the north of the West Bank, were harassed by Israeli soldiers, who detained them at the site, according to Sebastia’s mayor, Mohammad Azem.
Azem told WAFA that soldiers broke into the site, to the north of Nablus city, while the students were on a field trip, and detained the students inside it.
He said that soldiers harassed the students and provoked confrontations in the area.
Israel has been trying to take over the site, as it encourages settlers to visit it while preventing Palestinians from caring for it, even though it is located in the heart of the occupied West Bank.
The present town of Sebastia, including the archaeological remains, the historical town, and the cultural landscape, is one of Palestine’s major tourist attractions.
A series of restorative activities was carried out in the historic core, including renovation of the mosque, the shrine of Nabi Yahyia, the Cathedral of John the Baptist, the Roman mausoleum, the olive press, Kayed Palace, and the traditional buildings, along with a walking trail.
Israeli occupation authorities, Tuesday, notified a Palestinian school in the town of Samou, to the south of Hebron, to stop working, claiming that it has been constructed in an area which threatens archaeological sites.
Palestinian Ministry of Education said, in a statement, that Israeli occupation authorities notified for the cessation of work in the Simaya elementary school, affiliated with the Directorate of Education, to the south of Hebron, located in Al-Samou area.
The Ministry noted that the Israeli step is a part of a campaign against the school and dozens of other schools, under fake pretexts.
The step threatens Palestinian students’ right to education, a right which is guaranteed by all international laws, charters and customs.
Al Ray further reports that the move coincided with the International Day for Human Rights, revealing Israel’s oppressive agenda and its continued violation of the rights of the Palestinian people, especially the right of students to education.
The school serves more than 40 students in the targeted areas that are subject to Israeli aggression.
In related news, Palestinian students on a field trip, today, at the Sebastia archaeological site, in the north of the West Bank, were harassed by Israeli soldiers, who detained them at the site, according to Sebastia’s mayor, Mohammad Azem.
Azem told WAFA that soldiers broke into the site, to the north of Nablus city, while the students were on a field trip, and detained the students inside it.
He said that soldiers harassed the students and provoked confrontations in the area.
Israel has been trying to take over the site, as it encourages settlers to visit it while preventing Palestinians from caring for it, even though it is located in the heart of the occupied West Bank.
The present town of Sebastia, including the archaeological remains, the historical town, and the cultural landscape, is one of Palestine’s major tourist attractions.
A series of restorative activities was carried out in the historic core, including renovation of the mosque, the shrine of Nabi Yahyia, the Cathedral of John the Baptist, the Roman mausoleum, the olive press, Kayed Palace, and the traditional buildings, along with a walking trail.
The Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS) has reported that Ahmad Zahran, 42, imprisoned by Israeli under repeatedly renewed arbitrary Administrative Detention orders without charges or trial, is ongoing with the hunger strike for the 80th consecutive day, despite his seriously deteriorating health condition.
The PPS stated that the Israeli Prison Authority is rejecting his demands, and that a court hearing is scheduled to take place on December 19th, to discuss an appeal filed by his lawyer, demanding the revocation of the new four-month Administrative Detention order against him.
Zahran, a married father of four, is currently at Kaplan Israeli medical center, and is facing serious health complications, but determined to continue his strike.
The PPS also said that the detainee remains denied visits with his family, and even his lawyers are facing numerous obstacles whenever they demand sitting with him.
He was repeatedly transferred to various prisons and was placed in solitary confinement, in cells that are not fit for human habitation.
Zahran, from Deir Abu Mashal town, near Ramallah, is also a former political prisoner who spent 15 years in Israeli prisons and detention centers.
Since the beginning of this year, dozens of detainees held hunger strikes for various periods demanding an end of their arbitrary detention; there are around 450 Palestinians held by Israel under the same orders.
The PPS stated that the Israeli Prison Authority is rejecting his demands, and that a court hearing is scheduled to take place on December 19th, to discuss an appeal filed by his lawyer, demanding the revocation of the new four-month Administrative Detention order against him.
Zahran, a married father of four, is currently at Kaplan Israeli medical center, and is facing serious health complications, but determined to continue his strike.
The PPS also said that the detainee remains denied visits with his family, and even his lawyers are facing numerous obstacles whenever they demand sitting with him.
He was repeatedly transferred to various prisons and was placed in solitary confinement, in cells that are not fit for human habitation.
Zahran, from Deir Abu Mashal town, near Ramallah, is also a former political prisoner who spent 15 years in Israeli prisons and detention centers.
Since the beginning of this year, dozens of detainees held hunger strikes for various periods demanding an end of their arbitrary detention; there are around 450 Palestinians held by Israel under the same orders.
journalist Bushra Tawil
The Israeli occupation forces (IOF) last night and at dawn Wednesday kidnaped 11 Palestinian citizens, including a female ex-detainee, mostly during raids on homes in the West Bank.
According to the Palestinian Prisoner Society, five citizens were taken prisoners during an IOF campaign in different areas of Ramallah and Bireh province.
The detainees were identified as Kamal Nakhla, Laith at-Tarifi, Ahmed Kayed, Ahmed al-Saher, and journalist Bushra Attaweel, an ex-detainee.
Five others, including a 16-year-old teenager, were also kidnaped by the IOF from their homes in Halhul town in al-Khalil and Aida refugee camp in Bethlehem.
Another West Bank citizen identified as Ayman Tanja from Tulkarem refugee camp was kidnaped during his presence in the 1948 occupied lands.
Soldiers Abduct Seven Palestinians, Injure Many And Attack Three Journalists
Israeli soldiers abducted, on Wednesday at dawn, seven Palestinians from several parts of the occupied West Bank, after the army invaded and searched many homes, and injured many others, in addition to attacking journalists and confiscating two cars.
In Ramallah governorate, in central West Bank, the soldiers abducted five Palestinians, including a woman who is a former political prisoner.
The Palestinian Prisoners’ Society (PPS) said the soldiers abducted a former political prisoner, identified as Bushra Tawil, in addition to Laith ‘Aassi Tarifi, from their homes from the al-Biereh city.
It added that the soldiers also abducted Ahmad Kayed from Beitin town, Kamel Nakhla from the al-Jalazoun refugee camp, and Ahmad Abdullah as-Saher, from Silwad town.
The soldiers also caused dozens of Palestinians to suffer the effects of teargas inhalation, during protests that erupted after the army invaded Birzeit city and the al-Jalazoun refugee camp, in addition to the neighborhoods of Ein Misbah and Um ash-Sharayet.
Medical sources in Ramallah said the soldiers shot a young man with a rubber-coated steel bullet in his leg, and prevented many journalists from documenting the invasions, before assaulting of them, identified as Mohammad Turkman, Ali Dar Ali and Karim Khamaisa.
Furthermore, the soldiers abducted Mahmoud Bajes Aqel and Nayef Abdullah Shatreet, from their homes in Halhoul town, north of the southern West Bank city of Hebron.
The soldiers also searched and ransacked the homes of Eyad Bajes Aqel in Halhoul town, and Ezzeddin al-Ja’bari, from Hebron city.
In Bethlehem, south of occupied Jerusalem, the soldiers invaded Marah Rabah village, south of the city, and confiscated a car owned by a local resident, in addition to storming and searching homes in ‘Aida refugee camp, north of Bethlehem.
In ‘Azzoun town, east of the northern West Bank city of Qalqilia, the soldiers invaded and searched the home of Ahmad Qassem Sheikh, and confiscated a car, owned by another resident.
Also in Qalqilia, the soldiers fired live rounds, rubber-coated steel bullets and gas bombs at Palestinian protesters.
Protests also took place in the al-Basateen area in Qalqilia, where some protested hurled Molotov cocktails at the invading army jeeps.
In Nablus, in northern West Bank, the soldiers searched two homes, and attacked locals protesting the invasion.
Media sources in Nablus said a protester hurled a Molotov cocktail at an army jeep during the invasion.
In occupied Jerusalem, the soldiers searched homes and abducted a young man, identified as Husam Abu Mayyala, and his father, from their home in Shu’fat refugee camp, north of the city, and fired many gas bombs at protesters.
The Israeli occupation forces (IOF) last night and at dawn Wednesday kidnaped 11 Palestinian citizens, including a female ex-detainee, mostly during raids on homes in the West Bank.
According to the Palestinian Prisoner Society, five citizens were taken prisoners during an IOF campaign in different areas of Ramallah and Bireh province.
The detainees were identified as Kamal Nakhla, Laith at-Tarifi, Ahmed Kayed, Ahmed al-Saher, and journalist Bushra Attaweel, an ex-detainee.
Five others, including a 16-year-old teenager, were also kidnaped by the IOF from their homes in Halhul town in al-Khalil and Aida refugee camp in Bethlehem.
Another West Bank citizen identified as Ayman Tanja from Tulkarem refugee camp was kidnaped during his presence in the 1948 occupied lands.
Soldiers Abduct Seven Palestinians, Injure Many And Attack Three Journalists
Israeli soldiers abducted, on Wednesday at dawn, seven Palestinians from several parts of the occupied West Bank, after the army invaded and searched many homes, and injured many others, in addition to attacking journalists and confiscating two cars.
In Ramallah governorate, in central West Bank, the soldiers abducted five Palestinians, including a woman who is a former political prisoner.
The Palestinian Prisoners’ Society (PPS) said the soldiers abducted a former political prisoner, identified as Bushra Tawil, in addition to Laith ‘Aassi Tarifi, from their homes from the al-Biereh city.
It added that the soldiers also abducted Ahmad Kayed from Beitin town, Kamel Nakhla from the al-Jalazoun refugee camp, and Ahmad Abdullah as-Saher, from Silwad town.
The soldiers also caused dozens of Palestinians to suffer the effects of teargas inhalation, during protests that erupted after the army invaded Birzeit city and the al-Jalazoun refugee camp, in addition to the neighborhoods of Ein Misbah and Um ash-Sharayet.
Medical sources in Ramallah said the soldiers shot a young man with a rubber-coated steel bullet in his leg, and prevented many journalists from documenting the invasions, before assaulting of them, identified as Mohammad Turkman, Ali Dar Ali and Karim Khamaisa.
Furthermore, the soldiers abducted Mahmoud Bajes Aqel and Nayef Abdullah Shatreet, from their homes in Halhoul town, north of the southern West Bank city of Hebron.
The soldiers also searched and ransacked the homes of Eyad Bajes Aqel in Halhoul town, and Ezzeddin al-Ja’bari, from Hebron city.
In Bethlehem, south of occupied Jerusalem, the soldiers invaded Marah Rabah village, south of the city, and confiscated a car owned by a local resident, in addition to storming and searching homes in ‘Aida refugee camp, north of Bethlehem.
In ‘Azzoun town, east of the northern West Bank city of Qalqilia, the soldiers invaded and searched the home of Ahmad Qassem Sheikh, and confiscated a car, owned by another resident.
Also in Qalqilia, the soldiers fired live rounds, rubber-coated steel bullets and gas bombs at Palestinian protesters.
Protests also took place in the al-Basateen area in Qalqilia, where some protested hurled Molotov cocktails at the invading army jeeps.
In Nablus, in northern West Bank, the soldiers searched two homes, and attacked locals protesting the invasion.
Media sources in Nablus said a protester hurled a Molotov cocktail at an army jeep during the invasion.
In occupied Jerusalem, the soldiers searched homes and abducted a young man, identified as Husam Abu Mayyala, and his father, from their home in Shu’fat refugee camp, north of the city, and fired many gas bombs at protesters.
In pre-dawn raids on Wednesday, Israeli forces invaded several parts of the West Bank, driving into sleeping towns and refugee camps and forcing residents out of bed, abducting seven and ransacking a number of homes.
They also fired tear gas to disperse residents of the invaded areas who had come outside to protest against the invasion of their homes.
In Ramallah district, the occupation forces abducted five Palestinians, including a former political prisoner, in the city of Ramallah and the nearby town of al-Bireh.
According to the Palestinian Wafa News Agency, the abducted Palestinians are: former prisoner Bushra Al-Tawil from Al-Bireh, Leith Assi Al-Tarifi from the city of Al-Bireh, Ahmed Kayed from the town of Peten, and Kamel Nakhleh from the Jalazoun camp, and Ahmed Abdullah Al-Sahir from the town of Silwad.
Dozens of Palestinians suffered from tear gas inhalation, during violent confrontations in Birzeit, Al-Bireh, Al-Jalazoun camp, Ain Misbah neighborhood, and Umm Al-Sharayet .
In Hebron district, the Israeli forces aducted Mahmoud Bajis Aqel and Nayef Abdullah Shatrit, from the town of Haloul, north of Hebron, after they raided their homes and tampered with their contents.
Israeli forces also searched the house of Iyad Bajis Aql in the town of Halhoul, and the house of Izz al-Din al-Jabari in the city of Hebron, in the southern West Bank, and tampered with their contents.
In Bethlehem, Israeli forces seized a vehicle belonging to a citizen from the village of Marah Rabah, south of Bethlehem.
And security sources reported to the Wafa news agency that Israeli forces raided the house of Ahmed Qassem Al-Sheikh, searched it, and seized his vehicle.
They also fired tear gas to disperse residents of the invaded areas who had come outside to protest against the invasion of their homes.
In Ramallah district, the occupation forces abducted five Palestinians, including a former political prisoner, in the city of Ramallah and the nearby town of al-Bireh.
According to the Palestinian Wafa News Agency, the abducted Palestinians are: former prisoner Bushra Al-Tawil from Al-Bireh, Leith Assi Al-Tarifi from the city of Al-Bireh, Ahmed Kayed from the town of Peten, and Kamel Nakhleh from the Jalazoun camp, and Ahmed Abdullah Al-Sahir from the town of Silwad.
Dozens of Palestinians suffered from tear gas inhalation, during violent confrontations in Birzeit, Al-Bireh, Al-Jalazoun camp, Ain Misbah neighborhood, and Umm Al-Sharayet .
In Hebron district, the Israeli forces aducted Mahmoud Bajis Aqel and Nayef Abdullah Shatrit, from the town of Haloul, north of Hebron, after they raided their homes and tampered with their contents.
Israeli forces also searched the house of Iyad Bajis Aql in the town of Halhoul, and the house of Izz al-Din al-Jabari in the city of Hebron, in the southern West Bank, and tampered with their contents.
In Bethlehem, Israeli forces seized a vehicle belonging to a citizen from the village of Marah Rabah, south of Bethlehem.
And security sources reported to the Wafa news agency that Israeli forces raided the house of Ahmed Qassem Al-Sheikh, searched it, and seized his vehicle.
By Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association
Palestinians mark International Human Rights Day following a year of nonstop violence and widespread human rights violations by Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF), against the Palestinian population used, as a form of collective punishment and a method to control Palestinian society.
These consistent and systematic policies by the occupation include, extrajudicial executions and issuance of discriminatory legislations, mass arrests campaigns, torture, administrative detention, and medical negligence against Palestinian political prisoners.
Arrests of Palestinians
Under Article 3 and Article 9 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, all human beings have the right to liberty and the right not to be subjected to arbitrary arrest and detention. Palestinians, however, have suffered from a widespread policy of arrests and use of arbitrary detention by the Israeli occupation forces (IOF) for decades.
In 2018 alone, the Israeli occupation forces (IOF) arrested around 6500 Palestinians, including 1080 children, 133 women, 6 PLC members and 17 journalists. Additionally, they issued 912 administrative detention orders, 398 of which were new.
In 2019, the IOF continued its policy of arbitrary detention of Palestinians; by the end of November 2019, the IOF arrested around 5190 Palestinians. The month of November 2019 ended with around 5000 prisoners including 185 children, 38 women, 8 Palestine Legislative Council (PLC) members.
Additionally, there are 460 administrative detainees, and around 700 prisoners with health issues needing urgent medical attention. There are also 26 long-term prisoners who were arrested before the signing of the Oslo Accords in 1993; including the two longest serving prisoners, Karim and Maher Younis, who were arrested in 1983.
Administrative Detention of Palestinians
The IOF detains Palestinians without charges or trial which prevents the detainee and his/her lawyer from knowing the reasons for detention, and prevents the possibility of building an effectivve defense. The administrative detention order can be renewed indefinitely, effectively indefinite detention. It is issued through the executive, and not the judiciary authority, which violates the principle of a fair trial.
The systematic, widespread, and arbitrary use of administrative detention by the Israeli occupying state, without guaranteeing the basic standards of a fair trial, is a form of psychological torture, a violation of international humanitarian law, and a war crime.
The number of administrative detainees in Israeli prisons, at the end of November 2019 reached around 460 detainees, including 5 PLC members, 2 female prisoners and 2 children.
Imprisonment of Palestinian Children
Under International Human Rights Law, children must be afforded special protection and their best interest should always be a primary consideration. The Convention on the Rights of the Child, which was ratified by Israel in 1991, prohibits the arbitrary detention of children and stipulates that the detention and imprisonment of children should only be used as a measure of last resort and for the shortest appropriate period of time.
Palestinian children, however, are regularly subjected to arrests and detention by the Israeli occupation. Children often undergo ill-treatment at the hands of IOF forces and are subject to a wide array of violations. Arrests usually take place in night invasions and are often physically and verbally abused during arrest, transfer and detention.
As of November 2019, the number of Palestinian children in Israeli occupation prisons, is 185 children, including 2 held under administrative detention.
Torture and Ill-Treatment
Despite the absolute prohibition against torture, enshrined under article (2) of the International Convention against Torture and ratified by Israel on 3 October 1991, Israeli torture against Palestinian detainees is systematic and widespread. Affidavits and documented cases gathered by various human rights organizations in the occupied Palestinian territories, including Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association, have shown that the Israeli occupation authorities use torture as a first measure for extracting statements from Palestinian detainees, in violation of their rights to bodily integrity, physical safety, and basic dignity.
Torture and ill treatment has continued throughout 2019 Addameer has documented an escalation of the use of violence and excessive force against Palestinians during arrest and detention. Several Palestinian were arrested after being shot by IOF forces in the aftermath of alleged attacks.
Many of those who were arrested after being shot were subjected to field interrogations while bleeding, interrogations during treatment in hospitals while chained to bed as well as being subjected to harsh interrogations shortly after release from hospitals. Torture methods include, traditional physical violence, such as, harsh beatings, sleep deprivation, stress positions, deprivation of food and water, physiological torture, such as threats against family members, threats of sexual violence, and threats of administrative detention without charge or trial.
Addameer is particularly alarmed at the case of Samer Arbeed, who was arrested on 25 September 2019. Samer was tortured nearly to the point of death, and was transferred to the hospital on 27 September 2019, following 2 days in interrogation at Al-Mascobiyya Interrogation Center, due to life-threatening injuries.
Medical Negligence
Medical negligence continues to be a policy, with not only specialized medical care, but also the minimum standards for medical care are unavailable to prisoners and detainees. The Israeli Prison Service (IPS) has adopted a policy of deliberate medical neglect against prisoners and detainees.
Human rights organizations estimate that since 1967, 222 Palestinian prisoners have died in Israeli prisons and detention centers, including 67 prisoners that died as a result of medical negligence. In 2019 alone, 5 prisoners died in Israeli prisons, 3 out of those 5 died as a result of medical negligence, as in the case of Sami Abu Diak.
Human Rights Defenders
In 2019, the (IOF) continued its crackdown and repression of human rights defenders. Currently, Addameer faces gag orders against around 40 of the cases they represent, who are in interrogation. The gag order prohibits us from releasing any information to the public regarding their detention status, or face grave consequences.
In the early hours of 19 September 2019, the Addameer office in Ramallah was raided, and essential equipment, including laptops, memory cards, books and publications were stolen by the (IOF), and have yet to be returned. Indeed, civil society organizations and their staff are targeted for doing the work of upholding and being vocal about human rights violations.
Several of Addameer’s staff have travel bans that prevent them from traveling outside of Palestine. Moreover, Addameer’s legal coordinator, Ayman Nasser has been under administrative detention since September 2018 without charge or trial. His administrative detention order has been renewed for three times since the end of his first detention order.
Conclusion
On the International Human Rights Day, Addameer calls for an end to ongoing violations by Israeli occupation forces in the form of mass arrest campaigns, rapidly increasing use of administrative detention, continued denial of fair trial, and illegal torture and ill-treatment of Palestinian detainees.
Addameer calls on members of the international community, particularly UN Member States and UN bodies and agencies, to hold Israel accountable for its ongoing violations against the Palestinian occupied population.
Addameer believes Israeli mass incarceration of Palestinians is an inextricable part of the ongoing violence of the occupation. Tearing at the fabric of Palestinian society, recent arrest campaigns seek to suppress the Palestinian people’s ability to endure in their struggles against the occupation.
It is important that on this day, we all stand united to call for an end to Israeli violations of Palestinian rights and an end to the Israeli occupation. As Israel acts with ever growing contempt for international law and the will of the international community, action is now needed more than ever.
Palestinians mark International Human Rights Day following a year of nonstop violence and widespread human rights violations by Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF), against the Palestinian population used, as a form of collective punishment and a method to control Palestinian society.
These consistent and systematic policies by the occupation include, extrajudicial executions and issuance of discriminatory legislations, mass arrests campaigns, torture, administrative detention, and medical negligence against Palestinian political prisoners.
Arrests of Palestinians
Under Article 3 and Article 9 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, all human beings have the right to liberty and the right not to be subjected to arbitrary arrest and detention. Palestinians, however, have suffered from a widespread policy of arrests and use of arbitrary detention by the Israeli occupation forces (IOF) for decades.
In 2018 alone, the Israeli occupation forces (IOF) arrested around 6500 Palestinians, including 1080 children, 133 women, 6 PLC members and 17 journalists. Additionally, they issued 912 administrative detention orders, 398 of which were new.
In 2019, the IOF continued its policy of arbitrary detention of Palestinians; by the end of November 2019, the IOF arrested around 5190 Palestinians. The month of November 2019 ended with around 5000 prisoners including 185 children, 38 women, 8 Palestine Legislative Council (PLC) members.
Additionally, there are 460 administrative detainees, and around 700 prisoners with health issues needing urgent medical attention. There are also 26 long-term prisoners who were arrested before the signing of the Oslo Accords in 1993; including the two longest serving prisoners, Karim and Maher Younis, who were arrested in 1983.
Administrative Detention of Palestinians
The IOF detains Palestinians without charges or trial which prevents the detainee and his/her lawyer from knowing the reasons for detention, and prevents the possibility of building an effectivve defense. The administrative detention order can be renewed indefinitely, effectively indefinite detention. It is issued through the executive, and not the judiciary authority, which violates the principle of a fair trial.
The systematic, widespread, and arbitrary use of administrative detention by the Israeli occupying state, without guaranteeing the basic standards of a fair trial, is a form of psychological torture, a violation of international humanitarian law, and a war crime.
The number of administrative detainees in Israeli prisons, at the end of November 2019 reached around 460 detainees, including 5 PLC members, 2 female prisoners and 2 children.
Imprisonment of Palestinian Children
Under International Human Rights Law, children must be afforded special protection and their best interest should always be a primary consideration. The Convention on the Rights of the Child, which was ratified by Israel in 1991, prohibits the arbitrary detention of children and stipulates that the detention and imprisonment of children should only be used as a measure of last resort and for the shortest appropriate period of time.
Palestinian children, however, are regularly subjected to arrests and detention by the Israeli occupation. Children often undergo ill-treatment at the hands of IOF forces and are subject to a wide array of violations. Arrests usually take place in night invasions and are often physically and verbally abused during arrest, transfer and detention.
As of November 2019, the number of Palestinian children in Israeli occupation prisons, is 185 children, including 2 held under administrative detention.
Torture and Ill-Treatment
Despite the absolute prohibition against torture, enshrined under article (2) of the International Convention against Torture and ratified by Israel on 3 October 1991, Israeli torture against Palestinian detainees is systematic and widespread. Affidavits and documented cases gathered by various human rights organizations in the occupied Palestinian territories, including Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association, have shown that the Israeli occupation authorities use torture as a first measure for extracting statements from Palestinian detainees, in violation of their rights to bodily integrity, physical safety, and basic dignity.
Torture and ill treatment has continued throughout 2019 Addameer has documented an escalation of the use of violence and excessive force against Palestinians during arrest and detention. Several Palestinian were arrested after being shot by IOF forces in the aftermath of alleged attacks.
Many of those who were arrested after being shot were subjected to field interrogations while bleeding, interrogations during treatment in hospitals while chained to bed as well as being subjected to harsh interrogations shortly after release from hospitals. Torture methods include, traditional physical violence, such as, harsh beatings, sleep deprivation, stress positions, deprivation of food and water, physiological torture, such as threats against family members, threats of sexual violence, and threats of administrative detention without charge or trial.
Addameer is particularly alarmed at the case of Samer Arbeed, who was arrested on 25 September 2019. Samer was tortured nearly to the point of death, and was transferred to the hospital on 27 September 2019, following 2 days in interrogation at Al-Mascobiyya Interrogation Center, due to life-threatening injuries.
Medical Negligence
Medical negligence continues to be a policy, with not only specialized medical care, but also the minimum standards for medical care are unavailable to prisoners and detainees. The Israeli Prison Service (IPS) has adopted a policy of deliberate medical neglect against prisoners and detainees.
Human rights organizations estimate that since 1967, 222 Palestinian prisoners have died in Israeli prisons and detention centers, including 67 prisoners that died as a result of medical negligence. In 2019 alone, 5 prisoners died in Israeli prisons, 3 out of those 5 died as a result of medical negligence, as in the case of Sami Abu Diak.
Human Rights Defenders
In 2019, the (IOF) continued its crackdown and repression of human rights defenders. Currently, Addameer faces gag orders against around 40 of the cases they represent, who are in interrogation. The gag order prohibits us from releasing any information to the public regarding their detention status, or face grave consequences.
In the early hours of 19 September 2019, the Addameer office in Ramallah was raided, and essential equipment, including laptops, memory cards, books and publications were stolen by the (IOF), and have yet to be returned. Indeed, civil society organizations and their staff are targeted for doing the work of upholding and being vocal about human rights violations.
Several of Addameer’s staff have travel bans that prevent them from traveling outside of Palestine. Moreover, Addameer’s legal coordinator, Ayman Nasser has been under administrative detention since September 2018 without charge or trial. His administrative detention order has been renewed for three times since the end of his first detention order.
Conclusion
On the International Human Rights Day, Addameer calls for an end to ongoing violations by Israeli occupation forces in the form of mass arrest campaigns, rapidly increasing use of administrative detention, continued denial of fair trial, and illegal torture and ill-treatment of Palestinian detainees.
Addameer calls on members of the international community, particularly UN Member States and UN bodies and agencies, to hold Israel accountable for its ongoing violations against the Palestinian occupied population.
Addameer believes Israeli mass incarceration of Palestinians is an inextricable part of the ongoing violence of the occupation. Tearing at the fabric of Palestinian society, recent arrest campaigns seek to suppress the Palestinian people’s ability to endure in their struggles against the occupation.
It is important that on this day, we all stand united to call for an end to Israeli violations of Palestinian rights and an end to the Israeli occupation. As Israel acts with ever growing contempt for international law and the will of the international community, action is now needed more than ever.
The Government Information Bureau in Gaza announced, on Tuesday, that this year was the second-worst year for journalism in Palestine, with 557 Israeli violations against journalists, according to Quds News Network.
The spokesperson for the bureau, Salama Ma’arouf, said in a press conference that 2019 has been the second-worst year for journalism in Palestine, after 2018 in terms of the quantity and types of violations.
The bureau stated that 87 journalists were reportedly attacked and 21 were shot with live bullets, in Gaza, while 67 other journalists were attacked in the occupied West Bank during 2019.
The Information Bureau added that May of 2018 saw the highest number of Israeli violations against journalists and media institutions, which were covering marches and demonstrations organized throughout Palestine remembering the Palestinian Nakba or catastrophe, of 1948.
During the May, 2018 marches, Israeli forces caused 33 journalists to suffocate from tear-gas, caused 9 to suffer from burns, or fractures, and shot 24 journalists with rubber-coated metal bullets.
The bureau confirmed that in 2019, 100 journalists were arrested over social media posts. 18 journalists are still held in Israeli jails while 30 more were subject to torture and blackmail. It added that Israeli forces imposed excessive fines on media personnel.
It was also reported that the Israelis carried out approximately 30 raids into media institutions, journalists’ houses, cultural offices, and printing presses, in most cases, confiscating and/or damaging equipment.
The bureau also has documented 27 travel bans and equipment confiscation cases, which aimed to prevent journalists from performing their job, exposing Israeli actions.
The spokesperson for the bureau, Salama Ma’arouf, said in a press conference that 2019 has been the second-worst year for journalism in Palestine, after 2018 in terms of the quantity and types of violations.
The bureau stated that 87 journalists were reportedly attacked and 21 were shot with live bullets, in Gaza, while 67 other journalists were attacked in the occupied West Bank during 2019.
The Information Bureau added that May of 2018 saw the highest number of Israeli violations against journalists and media institutions, which were covering marches and demonstrations organized throughout Palestine remembering the Palestinian Nakba or catastrophe, of 1948.
During the May, 2018 marches, Israeli forces caused 33 journalists to suffocate from tear-gas, caused 9 to suffer from burns, or fractures, and shot 24 journalists with rubber-coated metal bullets.
The bureau confirmed that in 2019, 100 journalists were arrested over social media posts. 18 journalists are still held in Israeli jails while 30 more were subject to torture and blackmail. It added that Israeli forces imposed excessive fines on media personnel.
It was also reported that the Israelis carried out approximately 30 raids into media institutions, journalists’ houses, cultural offices, and printing presses, in most cases, confiscating and/or damaging equipment.
The bureau also has documented 27 travel bans and equipment confiscation cases, which aimed to prevent journalists from performing their job, exposing Israeli actions.
10 dec 2019
Israeli police forces on Tuesday arrested one of al-Aqsa Mosque's guards and allowed dozens of Israeli settlers to desecrate the site.
Eyewitnesses said that the extremist rabbi Yehuda Glick led scores of Jewish settlers into al-Aqsa Mosque under heavy police guard. video
The settlers carried out provocative tours inside al-Aqsa compound before leaving it through al-Silsila Gate.
Meanwhile, Israeli police forces arrested Fadi Elyyan, one pf al-Aqsa Mosque's guards, and transferred him to a nearby detention and interrogation center. video
Elyyan was detained for arguing with Israeli officers in protest at an arbitrary Israeli measure to move al-Aqsa Mosque guards' room to another place.
Eyewitnesses said that the extremist rabbi Yehuda Glick led scores of Jewish settlers into al-Aqsa Mosque under heavy police guard. video
The settlers carried out provocative tours inside al-Aqsa compound before leaving it through al-Silsila Gate.
Meanwhile, Israeli police forces arrested Fadi Elyyan, one pf al-Aqsa Mosque's guards, and transferred him to a nearby detention and interrogation center. video
Elyyan was detained for arguing with Israeli officers in protest at an arbitrary Israeli measure to move al-Aqsa Mosque guards' room to another place.
The Israeli occupation army on Monday morning allowed a few Palestinian citizens from the Gaza Strip to visit their relatives in Beersheba prison.
Local sources told a reporter for the Palestinian Information Center (PIC) that seven members of families were allowed to travel through the Beit Hanoun (Erez) border crossing to visit their relatives in Beersheba jail.
Every once in a while, the Israeli occupation authority allows, through the Red Cross, a few members of families from Gaza to visit their relatives in jails and bans many others from seeing their relatives for unexplained security reasons or because of their affiliation with Hamas.
Local sources told a reporter for the Palestinian Information Center (PIC) that seven members of families were allowed to travel through the Beit Hanoun (Erez) border crossing to visit their relatives in Beersheba jail.
Every once in a while, the Israeli occupation authority allows, through the Red Cross, a few members of families from Gaza to visit their relatives in jails and bans many others from seeing their relatives for unexplained security reasons or because of their affiliation with Hamas.
At least 13 Palestinian citizens were kidnaped last night and at dawn Tuesday from their homes by the Israeli occupation forces (IOF) in the West Bank and Jerusalem.
12 of those citizens were taken prisoners during IOF campaigns in different areas of Nablus, Jenin, Bethlehem, Ramallah, Tubas and Qalqilya.
The IOF also raided several homes in Qaffin town in Tulkarem and three homes in Beit Awwa town, al-Arroub refugee camp and Bani Na’im town in al-Khalil province.
During its campaign in Beit Awwa town, the IOF handed an ex-detainee called Sameer al-Masalma a summons from the Shin Bet for interrogation.
The IOF also raided, for the fourth consecutive time in a month, a house belonging to ex-detainee Mohamed Surour in Na’lin town in Ramallah and stormed the neighborhood of Sateh Marhaba in al-Bireh city, with no reported arrests.
In Jericho, several Palestinian young men suffered from their exposure to tear gas fumes during clashes with Israeli soldiers in Aqabat Jabr refugee camp.
In Jerusalem, Israeli police forces stormed Issawiya district in the east of the city and kidnaped a 16-year-old teenager called Muntaser Sabta and also handed other young men summonses for interrogation during raids on their homes in the same area.
Police forces also stormed Qalandiya refugee camp in Jerusalem and handed some young men summonses for interrogation.
12 of those citizens were taken prisoners during IOF campaigns in different areas of Nablus, Jenin, Bethlehem, Ramallah, Tubas and Qalqilya.
The IOF also raided several homes in Qaffin town in Tulkarem and three homes in Beit Awwa town, al-Arroub refugee camp and Bani Na’im town in al-Khalil province.
During its campaign in Beit Awwa town, the IOF handed an ex-detainee called Sameer al-Masalma a summons from the Shin Bet for interrogation.
The IOF also raided, for the fourth consecutive time in a month, a house belonging to ex-detainee Mohamed Surour in Na’lin town in Ramallah and stormed the neighborhood of Sateh Marhaba in al-Bireh city, with no reported arrests.
In Jericho, several Palestinian young men suffered from their exposure to tear gas fumes during clashes with Israeli soldiers in Aqabat Jabr refugee camp.
In Jerusalem, Israeli police forces stormed Issawiya district in the east of the city and kidnaped a 16-year-old teenager called Muntaser Sabta and also handed other young men summonses for interrogation during raids on their homes in the same area.
Police forces also stormed Qalandiya refugee camp in Jerusalem and handed some young men summonses for interrogation.
The Israeli occupation police on Monday evening kidnaped a Palestinian elderly man from his home in the Old City of Jerusalem, with no known reason.
The detainee was identified as 65-year-old Mahmoud al-Qulaghasi and was rounded up after ransacking his house in as-Sa’diya neighborhood of the Old City, according to his family.
His son, Rawhi, said that police and intelligence officers took his father to al-Qishla detention center in Bab al-Khalil (Jaffa Gate) area.
The detainee was identified as 65-year-old Mahmoud al-Qulaghasi and was rounded up after ransacking his house in as-Sa’diya neighborhood of the Old City, according to his family.
His son, Rawhi, said that police and intelligence officers took his father to al-Qishla detention center in Bab al-Khalil (Jaffa Gate) area.
