The soldier; Photo credit: free use
Thursday, June 8, 2023, 12:03 On May 22, a soldier and three civilians were detained on suspicion of being involved in an altercation with Arabs in Hadera in mid-April. The GSS interrogated the detainees for 72 hours and deprived them of their right to meet with an attorney, even after that prohibition was lifted. They were also illegally interroThursday, June 8, 2023, 12:03 On May 22, a soldier and three civilians were detained on suspicion of being involved in an altercation with Arabs in Hadera in mid-April. The GSS interrogated the detainees for 72 hours and deprived them of their right to meet with an attorney, even after that gated on the Shavuot holiday. On June 4, the Hadera Magistrates Court rejected a request from the GSS and the Israel Police to extend their remand and released them to house arrest.
Honenu Attorney Adi Keidar, who is representing the detainees, stated, “There are no grounds in this case to involve the GSS. They were involved only to apply pressure by denying the detainees their rights, and they held the detainees under inhumane conditions, resulting in worthless confessions. The failure of the GSS to allow the detainees to meet with an attorney once they were legally permitted to do so is a grave injustice that requires immediate intervention at the highest level.
In light of the interrogations carried out on the Shavuot holiday, Attorney Keidar wrote a letter to the Israel Police and the GSS objecting to their conduct: “First, I will note that we object to the use of GSS interrogations, and all that they entail, in this case, which has absolutely no connection to the GSS. The GSS boasts and protests in the presence of suspects that interrogating Jews instead of Arabs is a waste of time, and yet here they actually implemented it. Likewise, I would like to clarify that no consideration should be given to the ‘interrogations’ conducted on the Shavuot holiday. If that were not enough, the suspects were not informed of their right to consult an attorney and were not allowed any counsel. Is the GSS above the law?”