Ofer - Assault of soldier/policeman, Health Problems
Translation: Marganit W.
“Since I have doubts about the detainee’s cognitive abilities, I am ordering remand extension until tomorrow, 1.1.18”
In the yard we met the mother and grandmother of Arij Hushia and they told us a heartrending story about her detention. The family comes from Qatana. They have a daughter with Down Syndrome and many health problems. The sick girl, who is 9, has a permit to go to East Jerusalem for various treatments. She had open heart surgery at Mukassad Hospital and needs follow up. The village where she lives offers no medical treatments, thus every time she has to report to hospital, they try to schedule as many appointments as possible: speech therapy at Amira Bassma Institute (which is adjacent to Mukassad), as well as an eye test at St. John Hospital.
On 27.12.17 Arij took her sister to St. John’s Hospital in East Jerusalem. The mother reported that the little girl panicked when she saw the lines at the checkpoint, the fences and the turnstiles. She ran away and Arij chased her. There was a bit of commotion and when they got back to the checkpoint it tuned out that Arij did not have a permit and she was arrested. The soldiers ripped the summons to hospital in front of her eyes. The mother told us about the financial difficulties the family is facing: the father can’t work because of an accident he had at work, the mother cleans houses, and the Down Syndrome girl stays home all the time. The mother and grandmother cried incessantly. The grandmother said that having a son in jail is terrible but for a girl it is tragic.
In his decision Justice Lieut. Col. Azriel Levy wrote: “In view of the paucity of material in the file, and because I have doubts about the cognitive abilities of the detainee, I order a remand extension until tomorrow at 12:00, so an indictment could be presented.”
The prosecutor said that the prosecution would charge Arij with assault, preventing soldiers from carrying out their duty and trying to enter without a permit. Apparently, they have plenty of time to deal with such cases.
We can foresee the plea bargain and the fine it will entail.
A detainee charged with staying illegally in Israel was brought in. He has been working in Tel Aviv for several years and speaks Hebrew. Justice Levy has a habit of asking every detainee before the hearing: “How are you? How is your health?” This time he also added “What do you want to do in life?” Answer: “Work!”
There was also a remand extension hearing of Munther Amira, resident of Al-Aida Camp who is a leader of the Popular Uprising in the West Bank. He has been detained since 27.12.17, charged with participating in a demonstration.
He maintains his right to remain silent.
The hearing centered on an appeal by Atty. Haya Abu-Warda who had objected to his remand extension.
The prosecutor requested 5 additional days claiming “there is clear and immediate danger!”
The defense explained that Amira works for the Foreign Relations Department of the Palestinian Authority, has 5 children and has a clean record. He also has health issues, for which she provided medical documents.
As for the demonstration, she stressed that Amira was exercising his right of free speech – something that does not exist in the Occupied Territories, where every rally is construed as disturbance of the peace.
Judge’s decision: “In view of the claim that the detainee had a dominant role in throwing rocks at IDF soldiers, the police must be allowed to complete its investigation. On the other hand, since this is a young man with no prior record, who presumably engaged in “legitimate” activity (quotes in the original text), and in view of his medical condition, as attested by the medical records, I order remand extension until Wed. 3.1.18, to allow completion of the investigation and filing of an indictment.
On Thursday, 4.1.18, Tamar Goldschmidt and Aya Kaniuk were at Ofer and reported that Munther Amira’s detention had been extended until Tue. 9.1.18.