Photo: Detained youths; Photo credit: Maginei Aretz
Wednesday, November 29, 2017, 14:25 Three youths, two minors and one adult, were detained early in the morning of Wednesday, November 29, at the “Maginei Aretz” outpost near the community of Har Bracha in the Shomron, on suspicion of violating a closed military zone order. The youths were held in remand handcuffed for many hours and the minors were interrogated without the presence of their parents, in violation of the Youth Law.
The violation of their rights did not end there: In the afternoon, the police filed a request with the Petah Tikva Magistrate Court for their release under restrictive conditions. A representative of the police who was present at the deliberation, was not supplied with the investigative file and was not able to answer questions posed by the court and the youths’ attorney. To the question of when the youths would be brought to court the police representative answered that the border police who detained the youths told him that, “I do not know when they will be brought, I do not know who will bring them, I have no vehicle in which to bring them, and I do not know when I will leave the [police] station.”
Due to the lack of a vehicle in which to transport them to the courthouse, the deliberation on their case was held in the presence of a police representative and Honenu Attorney Nati Rom, who represented the youths. Rom stated that the youths do not have criminal records and that, “This is a serious violation of the Youth Law. They have been handcuffed for many hours without cause and against the law.” Rom also stated that the minor detainees were interrogated without the presence of their parents, which is illegal and that, “This is a disproportional violation of the basic rights of detainees” and demanded their immediate release.
The police representative requested release of the youths on condition of 1,000 NIS bail and a 60-day distancing order from Yehuda and Shomron. In his decision Judge Dror Kleitman justified the opinion of Honenu Attorney Nati Rom because the youths are minors completely lacking a criminal record: “They have been in remand for many hours and no material from the investigation has been brought before the court.” Judge Kleitman rejected the release conditions which the police had requested and ruled that the youths will be released on condition of 750 NIS bail and an agreement to report for interrogation if ordered to do so.
Honenu Attorney Nati Rom stated in response that, “In addition to the repeated human rights violations, especially concerning minors from Yehuda and Shomron, we have been witness to the Israeli Police brutally detaining minors without a criminal record in the early hours of the morning. Large numbers of forces were sent to detain them over a violation for which it is doubtful that detention is warranted.
“Many policemen participated in their detention. However the police could not locate a vehicle or personnel or find the time to bring them before a judge as is required by law. This is a scandal, which indicates that the issue is not law enforcement by the Israeli Police but rather systematically pursuing the youths. I call on the relevant cabinet minister and senior officers in the police to put a stop to it.”