Arrest and Detention in the Palestinian Occupied Territories

“Every time I am called to appear before

your courts, I become nervous and afraid. Eighteen years ago, my sister was killed in a courtroom, such as this by a staff member. In my lifetime, I have been nine times imprisoned for an overall of almost 3 years, though I was never charged or convicted. During my imprisonment, I was paralyzed as a result of torture by your investigators. My wife was detained, my children were wounded, my land was stolen by settlers, and now my house is slated for demolition.” - Bassem Tamimi, father of four and human rights activist in the West Bank, in a statement to the military court at his trial on 5 June 2011.

There are thousands of stories in Palestine. You see them in the faces of young men sitting on street corners, unemployed and frustrated, and in the elderly, tired from decades of dislocation and humiliation. You hear them in the shouting of soldiers and the grinding of metal gates at check-points. You feel them in the heavy night air, when arrest raids are taking place under the cloak of darkness. Despite all the different ways military occupation affects daily life, the experience of imprisonment is one that almost all living in the Occupied West Bank, East Jerusalem, and the Gaza strip share. I will relay some of these stories which I came to know during my time in Palestine, working with the prisoner‘s rights group, Addameer, and witnessing trials at the Israeli military courts this summer.

Since the beginning of the Israeli military occupation in 1967, over 700,000 Palestinians have been arrested and detained under a set of military orders which govern civilian life. As per The Guardian, this means that an estimated 20% of the entire Palestinian population (or 40% of the entire male population according to Addameer) has been imprisoned at some time during their lives. Palestinians arrested by Israel and charged with criminal and security violations are tried in either of two military courts located in the West Bank. Some however are held in administrative detention without charge or trial for periods of up to 6 months, a term which is renewable indefinitely pursuant to Article 285 of Israeli Military Order 1651. According to Israel‘s Military Courts Report (2007), approximately 90% of all those charged are convicted. While Israel is permitted as an occupying power to establish military courts to try the civilian population, these courts are far from meeting basic requirements of international law regarding fair trial rights. For example, in contravention to the right to have adequate time and facilities to prepare a defence as per Article 14 (3) (b) of The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), a detainee can be held without access to counsel for 90 days. Furthermore, lawyers for the detainees face significant obstacles in preparing a defence due to court documents being written in Hebrew, incomplete disclosure of prosecution materials (deemed "secret evidence"), and difficulties meeting clients held in detention centers or prisons inside Israel. In contravention to the right to trial without undue delay as per Article 14 (3) (c) of the ICCPR, a detainee can be held for interrogation for 8 days without being brought before a judge. This interrogation period can be extended for an initial period of 90 days, which can be renewed for a subsequent 90 days; this means that a detainee can be held for 188 days in interrogation without charge. In addition, military officers have incredible leeway in determining what constitutes a violation. Pursuant to various military orders, such as Israel Defence Forces Military Order No. 101, a whole host of civic activities may be deemed offenses, including publishing "material having a political significance," carrying a Palestinian flag, or attending a demonstration.