Thursday, April 20, 2023, 17:49 Approximately one month ago, a resident of Havat Maon was detained on suspicion of violently assaulting a left-wing activist near his community. He was indicted, and the State Attorney’s Office requested that he be held in remand until the end of proceedings. The resident asked for the remand to be switched to house arrest at his grandparents’ home in the Old City of Jerusalem, and to be supervised via an ankle monitor.
The Maoz Department of the Prison Service, which oversees electronic tracking, refused the request. They stated that they would not have access to the grandparents’ home for surveillance since it was on a street leading to the Temple Mount, which was blocked because of arrangements for the month of Ramadan. However, the Be’er Sheva District Court accepted the Havat Maon resident’s request. He will be fitted with an ankle monitor and remain under full house arrest at his grandparents’ home until the end of the month. If the court had agreed with the Prison Service, the resident would have needlessly remained in prison.
Honenu Attorney Avichai Hajbi, who is representing the Havat Maon resident, stated, “The fact that the Prison Service admitted, in the year 2023, that because of the Ramadan fast they were unable to reach a house in Jerusalem is a disgrace. We are pleased that the court accepted our position, and despite the decision by the Prison Service, ordered the release of my client to house arrest.”