Shabbat desecrated, over 20 detainees in Ramat Migron

Sunday, August 5, 9:53 Over Shabbat 21 youths, 19 of them minors, the youngest of whom aged 14, were detained at the Ramat Migron outpost in the Binyamin region, Honenu reports. Youths at the site on summer vacation were holding a “team spirit building” Shabbat at which more than 40 youths participated. The event was organized under difficult field conditions; sleeping arrangements were in tents and one structure on the site. During the course of the detentions Shabbat was violated and many of the detainees complained of police violence. This morning and throughout the day the youths will be brought before a judge.
At night on Shabbat soldiers arrived at Ramat Migron and claimed that they had received complaints that during the evening the youths had thrown rocks at Arab cars driving on Route 60. The soldiers only spoke and then left the site. The following afternoon IDF and border police forces arrived at the site and began widespread detentions. Everyone whom they succeeded in grabbing was detained. In a conversation with a Honenu attorney the youths said that the policemen conducted themselves very violently. Also the forces destroyed a structure at the site. All of the detainees were taken to the nearby Sha’ar Binyamin Police Station. During the destruction personal items and equipment belonging to the youths were confiscated, including wallets containing cash, backpacks, cell phones and cameras.
Several hours after Shabbat was over border police forces raided the outpost again and detained three minors who were taken also to the Sha’ar Binyamin Police Station. All of the detainees were interrogated on suspicion of violating a closed military zone, trespassing and assaulting a policeman. A few of the detainees were interrogated on suspicion of throwing rocks.
Friends of the detainees object to the accusation of assaulting a policeman. According to them every time that the police use violence during detentions the detainees are accused of assaulting a policeman. “Policemen use the accusation in order to “offset” the violence that they use. If they are attacked, supposedly, then they are absolved of the complaints against them of violence,” their friends said.
Honenu reports that this morning all of the detainees will be brought to court in order to be released by agreement with the police, except for one of the detainees who is suspected of throwing rocks. The police are demanding that his remand be extended.