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Press release
Fear of Torture and Ill-Treatment of Thousands of Palestinians Detained by Israeli Occupying Forces
Date: 9 April 2002
Ref: 54/2002
PCHR is deeply concerned over the fate of thousands of Palestinian civilians detained without charge by Israeli occupying forces during the ongoing military offensive in the West Bank, specifically in regard to the seemingly arbitrary nature of these mass arrests, conditions of detention, treatment during detention, denial of access to legal counsel, and the unlawful transfer of detainees from the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT) into Israel.
Since 29 March, Israeli occupying forces have detained thousands of Palestinian civilians in the West Bank without charge during full-scale military invasions of Palestinian cities, towns, and refugee camps. Although many of these have been released, approximately one thousand are believed to remain in custody, either in prisons and detention camps in the OPT or in facilities inside Israel. Others have also been forcibly transferred to the Gaza strip after being held for several days.
At this time, Israeli occupying forces continue to hold Palestinians in detention centres throughout the West Bank, including: Ofra prison near Bitunia, Beit El prison near Ramallah, and al-Hawara prison near Nablus. In addition, the “Ansar 3” prison camp in the Negev in southern Israel has reportedly been reopened to accommodate detainees transferred from the West Bank. The facility, where thousands of Palestinians were held during the 1980s and 1990s, was closed down several years ago. The transfer of detainees from the OPT to Israel is a grave breach of the Fourth Geneva Convention.
According to testimonies of those who have been recently released, detainees were subjected to insults and degrading treatment, including being forced to stand naked outdoors in the rain with their hands and feet bound. Detainees also reported being denied access to adequate food and water, and denied permission to use the bathroom. Reports of torture, including the deliberate breaking of detainees’ toes, have also been received by human rights organisations.
An Israeli military order issued on 5 April grants officers the authority to arrest Palestinians and hold them for 18 days without having to allow them access to a lawyer or to produce them before a judge. The Israeli government has claimed that such an order is necessary to fight the “terrorist infrastructure.” Earlier this week, the Israeli Supreme Court rejected an appeal by four Israeli human rights organisations asking that Palestinian detainees be given access to lawyers, accepting the state’s arguments for the necessity of the order.
Israel is obligated by the Fourth Geneva Convention to ensure humane conditions of detention, adequate food and medical care, and access to adequate legal representation and a fair trial for Palestinian detainees. Torture, ill-treatment and other forms of cruel, degrading or inhuman treatment are also prohibited under the Convention, as well as by the UN Convention Against Torture.
PCHR reiterates its grave concern over the fate of these detainees, especially in light of the Israeli Supreme Court’s refusal to allow them access to attorneys and the lack of public information on the number and identity of detainees, as well as any charges brought against them. PCHR notes that information about other widespread and systematic human rights violations perpetrated by Israeli occupying forces has been similarly difficult to collect or verify. Israeli attacks on medical personnel, human rights defenders, and journalists are not only violations of international humanitarian law in themselves, but have prevented the outside world from being fully informed as to other violations of international humanitarian law, including war crimes, in areas under Israeli attack. PCHR calls upon the international community to take concrete steps to ensure that Israel respects international human rights and humanitarian law in the OPT, especially the Fourth Geneva Convention.
