15 feb 2017
The Israeli occupation police on Wednesday evening kidnapped a Palestinian child on claims that he snatched a gun from an Israeli soldier.
The Israeli police said in a statement they received a notification about an attempt by a Palestinian child to snatch a gun in Lod city, in 1948 Occupied Palestine.
The child is reportedly aged 13 and is a resident of the Lod city.
He was arrested right on the spot and dragged to an investigation center.
Recently, several Palestinians were kidnapped by the Israeli police on claims that they carried out anti-occupation attacks against Israeli soldiers.
The Israeli police said in a statement they received a notification about an attempt by a Palestinian child to snatch a gun in Lod city, in 1948 Occupied Palestine.
The child is reportedly aged 13 and is a resident of the Lod city.
He was arrested right on the spot and dragged to an investigation center.
Recently, several Palestinians were kidnapped by the Israeli police on claims that they carried out anti-occupation attacks against Israeli soldiers.
The Israeli occupation forces (IOF) interrogated the owner of a car wash in Zibda town to the west of Jenin city on Wednesday, and handed him a summons to appear before the Israeli intelligence in Salem army camp.
Local sources told the PIC reporter that Israeli soldiers raided the car wash and interrogated its owner, Murad Amarneh, before handing him the summons.
A number of Palestinian citizens were interrogated by Israeli intelligence officers in the field inside their shops before the Israeli force withdrew from the town without arresting anyone.
Israeli intelligence officers conduct regular field tours in the region and interrogate Palestinian citizens.
Local sources told the PIC reporter that Israeli soldiers raided the car wash and interrogated its owner, Murad Amarneh, before handing him the summons.
A number of Palestinian citizens were interrogated by Israeli intelligence officers in the field inside their shops before the Israeli force withdrew from the town without arresting anyone.
Israeli intelligence officers conduct regular field tours in the region and interrogate Palestinian citizens.
A new hearing is scheduled to be held Thursday to discuss Mohamed al-Qeiq’s secret file without neither his nor his lawyer’s presence, rights sources revealed.
The lawyer Khaled Zabarqa stressed that al-Qeiq’s arrest is political par excellence as it came after his release from Israeli jails following nearly three months of hunger strike.
Israel is practicing the revolving door policy against Palestinian prisoners who were released following hunger strikes, he pointed out.
Al-Qeiq is continuing his hunger strike for the ninth day in protest against his illegal administrative detention, the lawyer added.
Al-Qeiq was recently moved to solitary confinement in the Jalama prison, north of the occupied West Bank, in a bid to pressure him to end his hunger strike.
The Israeli occupation forces (IOF) re-arrested journalist al-Qeiq at Beit El checkpoint to the north of al-Bireh city on 15th January 2017 after he was detained along with relatives of Palestinian martyrs who had attended a protest in Bethlehem and who were later released.
The IOF previously arrested al-Qeiq on 21st November 2015 after raiding his house in Abu Qash town, to the north of Ramallah, and ordered him to 6-month administrative detention.
Al-Qeiq started a hunger strike on 25th November 2015 that lasted for 94 days protesting the bad treatment, administrative detention, and torture before clinching a deal on 19th May 2016 stipulating his release.
The lawyer Khaled Zabarqa stressed that al-Qeiq’s arrest is political par excellence as it came after his release from Israeli jails following nearly three months of hunger strike.
Israel is practicing the revolving door policy against Palestinian prisoners who were released following hunger strikes, he pointed out.
Al-Qeiq is continuing his hunger strike for the ninth day in protest against his illegal administrative detention, the lawyer added.
Al-Qeiq was recently moved to solitary confinement in the Jalama prison, north of the occupied West Bank, in a bid to pressure him to end his hunger strike.
The Israeli occupation forces (IOF) re-arrested journalist al-Qeiq at Beit El checkpoint to the north of al-Bireh city on 15th January 2017 after he was detained along with relatives of Palestinian martyrs who had attended a protest in Bethlehem and who were later released.
The IOF previously arrested al-Qeiq on 21st November 2015 after raiding his house in Abu Qash town, to the north of Ramallah, and ordered him to 6-month administrative detention.
Al-Qeiq started a hunger strike on 25th November 2015 that lasted for 94 days protesting the bad treatment, administrative detention, and torture before clinching a deal on 19th May 2016 stipulating his release.
The Israeli interior minister has issued renewed orders banning Sheikh Ra’ed Salah, head of the Islamic Movement in the 1984 occupied lands, from traveling abroad and entering the Aqsa Mosque and Jerusalem for five additional months.
According to Daily 48 website, Israeli police officers came on Tuesday evening to the house of Sheikh Ra’ed Salah in Umm al-Fahm city and handed him written orders in this regard signed by Israeli interior minister Aryeh Deri.
The ban on his entry to Jerusalem was renewed until July 11, 2017 in accordance with the British mandate emergency law, while his travel ban was extended until July 15, 2017 at the pretext of the authority vested in the interior minister.
Deri had signed a ban preventing the travel of Sheikh Salah for one month ahead of his release from an Israeli jail on January 17, 2017, claiming that his exit from Israel could endanger Israel's security.
Salah was imprisoned for the second consecutive time on allegations of incitement during a sermon he delivered in 2007 in Wadi Joz neighborhood in Occupied Jerusalem after the Israeli authorities demolished a ramp leading to the Maghariba Gate of the Aqsa Mosque.
According to Daily 48 website, Israeli police officers came on Tuesday evening to the house of Sheikh Ra’ed Salah in Umm al-Fahm city and handed him written orders in this regard signed by Israeli interior minister Aryeh Deri.
The ban on his entry to Jerusalem was renewed until July 11, 2017 in accordance with the British mandate emergency law, while his travel ban was extended until July 15, 2017 at the pretext of the authority vested in the interior minister.
Deri had signed a ban preventing the travel of Sheikh Salah for one month ahead of his release from an Israeli jail on January 17, 2017, claiming that his exit from Israel could endanger Israel's security.
Salah was imprisoned for the second consecutive time on allegations of incitement during a sermon he delivered in 2007 in Wadi Joz neighborhood in Occupied Jerusalem after the Israeli authorities demolished a ramp leading to the Maghariba Gate of the Aqsa Mosque.
Israel’s attorney general and state prosecutor are scheduled to hold a pre-indictment hearing on Wednesday for Arab Member of Knesset Basel Ghattas (Joint Arab List), Israeli media reported.
The indictment includes attempts to smuggle cellular telephones to security prisoners being held at the Ketziot prison in southern Israel.
Attorney Namir Adalbi said no contacts have been held with the prosecution authority over the lawsuit and that reports on underway negotiations are just counterfeit.
The Israeli police subjected Ghattas to intensive interrogation and sentenced him to house arrest while the Knesset banned him from its sessions for six months following claims he smuggled phones to Palestinian detainees.
The indictment includes attempts to smuggle cellular telephones to security prisoners being held at the Ketziot prison in southern Israel.
Attorney Namir Adalbi said no contacts have been held with the prosecution authority over the lawsuit and that reports on underway negotiations are just counterfeit.
The Israeli police subjected Ghattas to intensive interrogation and sentenced him to house arrest while the Knesset banned him from its sessions for six months following claims he smuggled phones to Palestinian detainees.
Israeli forces detained at least 26 Palestinians in raids across the occupied West Bank before dawn Wednesday.
Israeli forces carry out detention raids across the occupied territory on a near-daily basis, with the UN recording an average of 95 weekly raids in the West Bank in 2016, and 100 weekly raids on average thus far in 2017.
According to prisoners’ rights group Addameer, a total of 6,500 Palestinians were held in Israeli prisons as of January, including 300 minors. The group estimates some 40 percent of the male Palestinian population has been incarcerated by Israeli at some point in their lives.
Southern West Bank
Israeli forces launched multiple raids in towns and villages across the southern occupied West Bank district of Hebron, detaining at least 11 Palestinians.
Local activist Muhammad Ayyad Awad said that several houses were raided in central Beit Ummar as well as in the al-Bayyada area of the town.
Israeli forces raided the house of 40-year-old Raed Muhammad Mahmoud Ikhlayyil and detained him. According to Awad, Ikhlayyil was not able to move properly as he was suffering from a live gunshot wound in his pelvis that he sustained after being shot by Israeli soldiers in December at a funeral for his relative Khalid Ikhlayyil, when at least 20 other mourners were shot.
Two others were also detained after Israeli soldiers raided their homes in Beit Ummar, identified by Awad as 19-year-old Muhammad Ghazi Issa Zaaqiq and 16-year-old Muhammad Mahmoud Abdullah Awad, who were taken to the Etzion military camp in northern Beit Ummar.
Awad added that 28 Palestinians have been detained in Beit Ummar since the beginning of 2017, including 11 who were under 18 years of age.
Meanwhile, in the town of Dura, Israeli forces detained Dafaa Hantash, as well as Youssef Shahin and Nour al-Bustanji from the Wadi al-Shajina area after raiding and searching their homes, according to local sources.
An Israeli army spokesperson confirmed one detention in Dura, and informed Ma’an that raids in Hebron also saw three Palestinians detained in Sair and two detained in Deir Razih.
The spokesperson also said that two Palestinians were detained in the village of Husan in the southern occupied West Bank district of Bethlehem. The Israeli army also released a statement saying that 12 illegal vehicles were confiscated in Husan.
Central West Bank
Local sources in the central occupied West Bank told Ma’an that Saad al-Zghayyar was detained in the Jerusalem district village of Kafr Aqab, and that Rami al-Barghouthi was detained in the Ramallah district village of Kafr Ein.
An Israeli army spokesperson confirmed the two detentions, saying that the detention in Kafr Ein targeted an alleged Hamas operative, though she did not identify him by name.
She added that elsewhere in the Ramallah district, Israeli forces also detained a Palestinian in Bilin, four in Nilin, and one in Kafr Nima.
three were confiscated in Bilin for allegedly being used in clashes.
In addition, the Israeli army said three Palestinian-owned vehicles were confiscated in Bilin, while a locally-made weapon was allegedly found and confiscated in Kafr Nima.
Northern West Bank
Locals in the northern West Bank district of Qalqiliya said that four Palestinians were detained during a predawn raid in the village of Azzun, who were identified as Hamed Jamal Abu Haniyeh, Zaid Ali Abed al-Hafez Adwan, Firas Mahmoud Shihadeh Hussein, and Nidal Safwan Mansour Salim.
An Israeli army spokesperson confirmed four detentions in Azzun.
Locals also said that one Palestinian was detained in the village of Beit Furik in the Nablus district.
Israeli forces carry out detention raids across the occupied territory on a near-daily basis, with the UN recording an average of 95 weekly raids in the West Bank in 2016, and 100 weekly raids on average thus far in 2017.
According to prisoners’ rights group Addameer, a total of 6,500 Palestinians were held in Israeli prisons as of January, including 300 minors. The group estimates some 40 percent of the male Palestinian population has been incarcerated by Israeli at some point in their lives.
Southern West Bank
Israeli forces launched multiple raids in towns and villages across the southern occupied West Bank district of Hebron, detaining at least 11 Palestinians.
Local activist Muhammad Ayyad Awad said that several houses were raided in central Beit Ummar as well as in the al-Bayyada area of the town.
Israeli forces raided the house of 40-year-old Raed Muhammad Mahmoud Ikhlayyil and detained him. According to Awad, Ikhlayyil was not able to move properly as he was suffering from a live gunshot wound in his pelvis that he sustained after being shot by Israeli soldiers in December at a funeral for his relative Khalid Ikhlayyil, when at least 20 other mourners were shot.
Two others were also detained after Israeli soldiers raided their homes in Beit Ummar, identified by Awad as 19-year-old Muhammad Ghazi Issa Zaaqiq and 16-year-old Muhammad Mahmoud Abdullah Awad, who were taken to the Etzion military camp in northern Beit Ummar.
Awad added that 28 Palestinians have been detained in Beit Ummar since the beginning of 2017, including 11 who were under 18 years of age.
Meanwhile, in the town of Dura, Israeli forces detained Dafaa Hantash, as well as Youssef Shahin and Nour al-Bustanji from the Wadi al-Shajina area after raiding and searching their homes, according to local sources.
An Israeli army spokesperson confirmed one detention in Dura, and informed Ma’an that raids in Hebron also saw three Palestinians detained in Sair and two detained in Deir Razih.
The spokesperson also said that two Palestinians were detained in the village of Husan in the southern occupied West Bank district of Bethlehem. The Israeli army also released a statement saying that 12 illegal vehicles were confiscated in Husan.
Central West Bank
Local sources in the central occupied West Bank told Ma’an that Saad al-Zghayyar was detained in the Jerusalem district village of Kafr Aqab, and that Rami al-Barghouthi was detained in the Ramallah district village of Kafr Ein.
An Israeli army spokesperson confirmed the two detentions, saying that the detention in Kafr Ein targeted an alleged Hamas operative, though she did not identify him by name.
She added that elsewhere in the Ramallah district, Israeli forces also detained a Palestinian in Bilin, four in Nilin, and one in Kafr Nima.
three were confiscated in Bilin for allegedly being used in clashes.
In addition, the Israeli army said three Palestinian-owned vehicles were confiscated in Bilin, while a locally-made weapon was allegedly found and confiscated in Kafr Nima.
Northern West Bank
Locals in the northern West Bank district of Qalqiliya said that four Palestinians were detained during a predawn raid in the village of Azzun, who were identified as Hamed Jamal Abu Haniyeh, Zaid Ali Abed al-Hafez Adwan, Firas Mahmoud Shihadeh Hussein, and Nidal Safwan Mansour Salim.
An Israeli army spokesperson confirmed four detentions in Azzun.
Locals also said that one Palestinian was detained in the village of Beit Furik in the Nablus district.
14 feb 2017
The Israeli court in Lod city sentenced Tuesday the Palestinian young woman Shatila Abu Ayada, from Kafr Kassem City, to 16 years imprisonment.
Shatila, 23, was convicted of stabbing an Israeli woman last April and planning other attacks against Israeli targets following Mohamed Abu Khudeir’s killing by Israeli settlers near Nablus.
The Israeli indictment includes allegations of planning shooting attacks in occupied Jerusalem in December 2015 and planting a home-made bomb in an Israeli restaurant.
Shatila’s family strongly denied the Israeli indictment, saying that it includes fabricated charges.
A heavy fine is scheduled to be also imposed on the Palestinian prisoner as a compensation to the stabbed Israeli woman.
Shatila, 23, was convicted of stabbing an Israeli woman last April and planning other attacks against Israeli targets following Mohamed Abu Khudeir’s killing by Israeli settlers near Nablus.
The Israeli indictment includes allegations of planning shooting attacks in occupied Jerusalem in December 2015 and planting a home-made bomb in an Israeli restaurant.
Shatila’s family strongly denied the Israeli indictment, saying that it includes fabricated charges.
A heavy fine is scheduled to be also imposed on the Palestinian prisoner as a compensation to the stabbed Israeli woman.
The Israeli magistrate's court in Jerusalem convicted an imprisoned Palestinian teenage girl on charges of attempted murder and possession of a knife on Tuesday.
According to the defense lawyer Ramzi Kteilat, 17-year-old Malak Muhammad Salman was convicted for allegedly attempting to stab Israeli officers on Feb. 9, 2016 at the Damascus Gate entrance to occupied East Jerusalem's Old City.
Israeli police claimed at the time that they stopped Salman for "moving in a suspicious way," and then asked her to open her bag for inspection, when the teen allegedly pulled out a knife and attempted to stab the officers who “quickly controlled her without injuries."
Salman has been held in Israel’s HaSharon prison since her detention, and Kteilat said that the girl would have another court session for sentencing on March 26.
Salman’s conviction is the latest in an Israeli crackdown on young Jerusalemite Palestinians, many of them women, who have been accused of involvement in attacks, while Israeli authorities have ordered lengthy prison sentences for Palestinians as young as 14 years old in both East Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank.
Israeli forces have detained a number of Palestinians for allegedly being in possession of knives or having intentions to carry out attacks following a wave of unrest that began in October 2015, however, Israeli authorities' version of events have been challenged in a number of incidents, while rights groups have also widely documented the mistreatment, abuse, and torture of Palestinian youth in detention, and the harsh interrogation practices used to force their confessions.
Meanwhile, despite “on paper” having more rights than Palestinian children in the occupied West Bank who are subject to a draconian military detention system, in practice, Jerusalem minors “do not enjoy their enshrined rights” under a discriminatory Israeli civilian court system, according to rights group Defense for Children International - Palestine.
On Sunday, an Israeli court sentenced Huthaifa Ishaq Taha, a 17-year-old resident of the occupied East Jerusalem neighborhood of Kafr Aqab, to 12 years in prison over charges of attempting to carry out a stabbing attack in Jerusalem more than a year earlier.
Earlier this month, an Israeli court sentenced 16-year-old Manar Majdi Shweiki to six years in prison after being charged with knife possession and planning a stab attack.
Last month, an Israeli military court sentenced 16-year-old Amal Jamal Qabha to 18 months in prison for allegedly attempting to stab an Israeli soldier last year.
Some of the harsher sentences to be handed down recently include a 35-year sentence to a 22-year-old Jerusalemite for allegedly assisting in a deadly stabbing attack, an eight-and-a-half-year sentence for an alleged stabbing attempt by a 17-year-old East Jerusalem girl, 16 years in prison for a 19-year-old Palestinian girl who was shot and injured while allegedly attempting to stab an Israeli settler, while a Palestinian youth was sentenced to 18 years in prison for allegedly throwing a rock at an Israeli vehicle that caused the death of an Israeli -- representing the harshest sentence ever handed down for stone-throwing.
In January, prisoners’ rights group Addameer reported that Israel was holding 53 female Palestinian prisoners and some 300 Palestinian minors.
According to Addameer, among those detained between October 2015 and August 2016 were 13 underage girls, some of whom were wounded when Israeli forces detained them.
The group has also reported on the treatment of Palestinian women prisoners by Israeli prison authorities, stating that the majority of Palestinian women detainees were subjected to "psychological torture" and "ill-treatment" by Israeli authorities, including "various forms of sexual violence that occur such as beatings, insults, threats, body searches, and sexually explicit harassment.”
According to the defense lawyer Ramzi Kteilat, 17-year-old Malak Muhammad Salman was convicted for allegedly attempting to stab Israeli officers on Feb. 9, 2016 at the Damascus Gate entrance to occupied East Jerusalem's Old City.
Israeli police claimed at the time that they stopped Salman for "moving in a suspicious way," and then asked her to open her bag for inspection, when the teen allegedly pulled out a knife and attempted to stab the officers who “quickly controlled her without injuries."
Salman has been held in Israel’s HaSharon prison since her detention, and Kteilat said that the girl would have another court session for sentencing on March 26.
Salman’s conviction is the latest in an Israeli crackdown on young Jerusalemite Palestinians, many of them women, who have been accused of involvement in attacks, while Israeli authorities have ordered lengthy prison sentences for Palestinians as young as 14 years old in both East Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank.
Israeli forces have detained a number of Palestinians for allegedly being in possession of knives or having intentions to carry out attacks following a wave of unrest that began in October 2015, however, Israeli authorities' version of events have been challenged in a number of incidents, while rights groups have also widely documented the mistreatment, abuse, and torture of Palestinian youth in detention, and the harsh interrogation practices used to force their confessions.
Meanwhile, despite “on paper” having more rights than Palestinian children in the occupied West Bank who are subject to a draconian military detention system, in practice, Jerusalem minors “do not enjoy their enshrined rights” under a discriminatory Israeli civilian court system, according to rights group Defense for Children International - Palestine.
On Sunday, an Israeli court sentenced Huthaifa Ishaq Taha, a 17-year-old resident of the occupied East Jerusalem neighborhood of Kafr Aqab, to 12 years in prison over charges of attempting to carry out a stabbing attack in Jerusalem more than a year earlier.
Earlier this month, an Israeli court sentenced 16-year-old Manar Majdi Shweiki to six years in prison after being charged with knife possession and planning a stab attack.
Last month, an Israeli military court sentenced 16-year-old Amal Jamal Qabha to 18 months in prison for allegedly attempting to stab an Israeli soldier last year.
Some of the harsher sentences to be handed down recently include a 35-year sentence to a 22-year-old Jerusalemite for allegedly assisting in a deadly stabbing attack, an eight-and-a-half-year sentence for an alleged stabbing attempt by a 17-year-old East Jerusalem girl, 16 years in prison for a 19-year-old Palestinian girl who was shot and injured while allegedly attempting to stab an Israeli settler, while a Palestinian youth was sentenced to 18 years in prison for allegedly throwing a rock at an Israeli vehicle that caused the death of an Israeli -- representing the harshest sentence ever handed down for stone-throwing.
In January, prisoners’ rights group Addameer reported that Israel was holding 53 female Palestinian prisoners and some 300 Palestinian minors.
According to Addameer, among those detained between October 2015 and August 2016 were 13 underage girls, some of whom were wounded when Israeli forces detained them.
The group has also reported on the treatment of Palestinian women prisoners by Israeli prison authorities, stating that the majority of Palestinian women detainees were subjected to "psychological torture" and "ill-treatment" by Israeli authorities, including "various forms of sexual violence that occur such as beatings, insults, threats, body searches, and sexually explicit harassment.”
A Palestinian academic sounded the alarm over the preplanned tactics of psycho-physical torture perpetrated against Palestinian children in Israeli jails.
Director of the research unit at the Treatment and Rehabilitation Center for Victims of Torture (TRC) referred to the dubious nature of a decision by the Israeli High Court to cease all forms of physical torture against the detainees.
However, the court rule legitimized the torture of those who fell under the “ticking bomb” blacklist, a category from which no Palestinian detainee seems to have been safe.
According to Sahwil, Israel categorizes as “ticking bombs” those who hold pieces of information that “might affect Israelis’ lives.”
The academic dubbed such a two-faced court rule “a cover to legitimize torture and grant Israeli investigators more protection and immunity.”
In Sahwil’s terms, facts on the ground prove that Tel Aviv is violating its obligations as a signatory of the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.
The researcher said torture in Israeli jails often proceeds along the following four lines, respectively: Psycho-physical torment, internment in isolated cells, criminalization by calling the child a terrorist and a criminal until he/she internalizes that indignation and reaches a stage of self-loathing. The last stage revolves around a process of indoctrination and brainwashing to force the child to spy for Israel.
“Torture in Israeli jails does not just aim to force confession; it also seeks to dampen the children’s spirits and to paralyze them both intellectually and socially,” warned Sahwil. “Such policies aim to give birth to a generation of traumatized youth.”
Referring to the psychoanalytic studies, Sahwil said a child who had been subjected to torture and violence in his/her early childhood is also at high risk of internalizing violence and thus “behaving violently towards their family and society.”
He further spoke out against the psychotic disorders wrought by torture, most notably insomnia, nightmares, tachycardia, and voluntary solitude.
Ramallah-based TRC kept record of the arrest of 2,000 Palestinian children in 2016, up from 600 in 2015.
The center further documented cases of “immoral” violations and aggressions by the Israeli occupation soldiers against the Palestinian minors while being handcuffed and blindfolded.
“The most dangerous of such felonies are rape threats and molestation simulation. At a certain point, Israeli investigators start to take off their clothes and force the child to do the same until he/she is psychologically broken down,” said Sahwil.
“Even girls below the age of puberty are not safe from such torture tactics . . . at an age where they quite normally need psychological support,” he further stated.
The researcher called for an urgent action to save Palestinian children in Israeli jails, heal traumatized minors, and force Israel to cease all forms of mistreatment against Palestinian children.
The Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment adopted and opened for signature, ratification and accession by General Assembly resolution 39/46 of 10 December 1984 and which entered into force on 26 June 1987 defined torture as: “any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental, is intentionally inflicted on a person for such purposes as obtaining from him or a third person information or a confession, punishing him for an act he or a third person has committed or is suspected of having committed, or intimidating or coercing him or a third person, or for any reason based on discrimination of any kind.”
Article 2 of the convention also stipulated that: “No exceptional circumstances whatsoever, whether a state of war or a threat of war, internal political instability or any other public emergency, may be invoked as a justification of torture.”
Director of the research unit at the Treatment and Rehabilitation Center for Victims of Torture (TRC) referred to the dubious nature of a decision by the Israeli High Court to cease all forms of physical torture against the detainees.
However, the court rule legitimized the torture of those who fell under the “ticking bomb” blacklist, a category from which no Palestinian detainee seems to have been safe.
According to Sahwil, Israel categorizes as “ticking bombs” those who hold pieces of information that “might affect Israelis’ lives.”
The academic dubbed such a two-faced court rule “a cover to legitimize torture and grant Israeli investigators more protection and immunity.”
In Sahwil’s terms, facts on the ground prove that Tel Aviv is violating its obligations as a signatory of the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.
The researcher said torture in Israeli jails often proceeds along the following four lines, respectively: Psycho-physical torment, internment in isolated cells, criminalization by calling the child a terrorist and a criminal until he/she internalizes that indignation and reaches a stage of self-loathing. The last stage revolves around a process of indoctrination and brainwashing to force the child to spy for Israel.
“Torture in Israeli jails does not just aim to force confession; it also seeks to dampen the children’s spirits and to paralyze them both intellectually and socially,” warned Sahwil. “Such policies aim to give birth to a generation of traumatized youth.”
Referring to the psychoanalytic studies, Sahwil said a child who had been subjected to torture and violence in his/her early childhood is also at high risk of internalizing violence and thus “behaving violently towards their family and society.”
He further spoke out against the psychotic disorders wrought by torture, most notably insomnia, nightmares, tachycardia, and voluntary solitude.
Ramallah-based TRC kept record of the arrest of 2,000 Palestinian children in 2016, up from 600 in 2015.
The center further documented cases of “immoral” violations and aggressions by the Israeli occupation soldiers against the Palestinian minors while being handcuffed and blindfolded.
“The most dangerous of such felonies are rape threats and molestation simulation. At a certain point, Israeli investigators start to take off their clothes and force the child to do the same until he/she is psychologically broken down,” said Sahwil.
“Even girls below the age of puberty are not safe from such torture tactics . . . at an age where they quite normally need psychological support,” he further stated.
The researcher called for an urgent action to save Palestinian children in Israeli jails, heal traumatized minors, and force Israel to cease all forms of mistreatment against Palestinian children.
The Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment adopted and opened for signature, ratification and accession by General Assembly resolution 39/46 of 10 December 1984 and which entered into force on 26 June 1987 defined torture as: “any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental, is intentionally inflicted on a person for such purposes as obtaining from him or a third person information or a confession, punishing him for an act he or a third person has committed or is suspected of having committed, or intimidating or coercing him or a third person, or for any reason based on discrimination of any kind.”
Article 2 of the convention also stipulated that: “No exceptional circumstances whatsoever, whether a state of war or a threat of war, internal political instability or any other public emergency, may be invoked as a justification of torture.”
The Israeli prosecution authority on Monday filed indictments against two Palestinian prisoners for attacking jailers with sharp objects in recent incidents.
According to the Hebrew radio, the indictments are against the two Hamas prisoners, Mahmoud Nassar and Khaled al-Silawi, who carried out recently stabbing attacks against two prison officers in Nafha and Negev jails.
At the time, the leading committee of Hamas prisoners said the incidents happened in response to the exposure of detainees to persistent repressive and humiliating practices at the hands of Israeli jailers.
Following the stabbing incidents, the Israeli prison authority took several punitive measures against Hamas prisoners and isolated 15 of them.
However, representatives of prisoners and officials from the prison authority met last Friday and agreed on restoring the situation as it was before the attacks, according to al-Asra Media Office.
According to the Hebrew radio, the indictments are against the two Hamas prisoners, Mahmoud Nassar and Khaled al-Silawi, who carried out recently stabbing attacks against two prison officers in Nafha and Negev jails.
At the time, the leading committee of Hamas prisoners said the incidents happened in response to the exposure of detainees to persistent repressive and humiliating practices at the hands of Israeli jailers.
Following the stabbing incidents, the Israeli prison authority took several punitive measures against Hamas prisoners and isolated 15 of them.
However, representatives of prisoners and officials from the prison authority met last Friday and agreed on restoring the situation as it was before the attacks, according to al-Asra Media Office.
The Shin Bet, Israel’s internal intelligence apparatus, detained on Monday chief of Beit Dajan town Naser Abu Jaish after summoning him for interrogation in Huwara military base, south of Nablus city in the West Bank.
An Informed source said that Abu Jaish, a senior official of the Palestinian People’s Party, went yesterday to the army base in response to a summons from the Shin Bet before the latter decided to detain him for a while.
The source added that Abu Jaish was detained for about two hours because of his involvement in anti-Israel political activities.
Naser Abu Jaish is a prominent political figure in the West Bank and a staunch opponent of Israel’s settlement activities and violations against the Palestinian people.
An Informed source said that Abu Jaish, a senior official of the Palestinian People’s Party, went yesterday to the army base in response to a summons from the Shin Bet before the latter decided to detain him for a while.
The source added that Abu Jaish was detained for about two hours because of his involvement in anti-Israel political activities.
Naser Abu Jaish is a prominent political figure in the West Bank and a staunch opponent of Israel’s settlement activities and violations against the Palestinian people.
Israeli soldiers invaded, on Tuesday at dawn, several Palestinian communities in the occupied West Bank, searched and ransacked homes, and abducted six Palestinians, including two child siblings.
The Palestinian Prisoners’ Society (PPS) said dozens of soldiers invaded ‘Aida refugee camp, north of Bethlehem, searched homes and abducted two siblings, identified as Mohammad Salah al-Masa’eed, 13, and his brother Anas, 14.
It added that the soldiers also invaded and searched homes in the southern West Bank district of Hebron, and abducted two Palestinians, identified as Arafat Ahmad Eghneimat and Zaher Abdul-Rahim Halayqa.
In occupied Jerusalem, the soldiers searched a few homes, and abducted a former political prisoner, identified as Midhat ‘Obeid, and another Palestinian, identified as Ahmad ‘Ateyya.
Army Abducts Two Child Siblings In Bethlehem
Israeli soldiers invaded, on Tuesday at dawn, the ‘Aida refugee camp, north of the West Bank city of Bethlehem, and abducted two child siblings.
The Bethlehem office of the Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS) said the soldiers invaded the home of Salam al-Masa’eed and violently searched it, before abducting his two children.
The PPS said the children have been identified as Mohammad, 15, and his brother, Anas, 14, and added that the soldiers cuffed them and took them to an unknown destination.
The Palestinian Prisoners’ Society (PPS) said dozens of soldiers invaded ‘Aida refugee camp, north of Bethlehem, searched homes and abducted two siblings, identified as Mohammad Salah al-Masa’eed, 13, and his brother Anas, 14.
It added that the soldiers also invaded and searched homes in the southern West Bank district of Hebron, and abducted two Palestinians, identified as Arafat Ahmad Eghneimat and Zaher Abdul-Rahim Halayqa.
In occupied Jerusalem, the soldiers searched a few homes, and abducted a former political prisoner, identified as Midhat ‘Obeid, and another Palestinian, identified as Ahmad ‘Ateyya.
Army Abducts Two Child Siblings In Bethlehem
Israeli soldiers invaded, on Tuesday at dawn, the ‘Aida refugee camp, north of the West Bank city of Bethlehem, and abducted two child siblings.
The Bethlehem office of the Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS) said the soldiers invaded the home of Salam al-Masa’eed and violently searched it, before abducting his two children.
The PPS said the children have been identified as Mohammad, 15, and his brother, Anas, 14, and added that the soldiers cuffed them and took them to an unknown destination.
Israeli soldiers invaded, on Tuesday at dawn, several communities in the southern West Bank district of Hebron, abducted one Palestinian, and installed many roadblocks.
The Hebron office of the Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS) said several army vehicles invaded the Shiokh town, north of Hebron, and abducted Zaher Abdul-Rahim Halayqa, after searching his home and his brother’s home.
The PPS added that the soldiers installed roadblocks at the entrances of Sa’ir and Halhoul towns, in addition to Hebron’s northern road, before stopping and searching dozens of cars, while inspecting the ID cards of the passengers.
The Hebron office of the Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS) said several army vehicles invaded the Shiokh town, north of Hebron, and abducted Zaher Abdul-Rahim Halayqa, after searching his home and his brother’s home.
The PPS added that the soldiers installed roadblocks at the entrances of Sa’ir and Halhoul towns, in addition to Hebron’s northern road, before stopping and searching dozens of cars, while inspecting the ID cards of the passengers.
