Petah Tikva - Holding and trading of combat materiel, Remand Extension
Translation: L.W.
The place where detainees
are held changes from week to week: entrances are opened, entrances are closed, windows are blocked. Lawyers complain that, even when they set a time with the commandant to meet a detainee, they cannot meet him without problems. Each time when they arrive, problems are raised. Sometimes the detainee is in interrogation, sometimes in another activity, sometimes he is taken elsewhere for some need, etc. When two lawyers appear at the same time, only one enters, and the other must wait till the first has finished. Their time is wasted, their defense, which is a mission impossible in any case, is made difficult.
Today there are 11 detainees, 3 of whom are prohibited [from meeting a lawyer].
Chief Justice in Salem Court, Lieutenant Colonel Yair Tirosh, arrives, and the sitting judge goes out to talk to him - a conversation that lasts 20 minutes, amid the flow of cases.
A young woman appears, the investigator sits beside her, and after a while she moves to sit at his table to follow each of the files lying before him.
Hearings begin at 10:15.
Again, the story of bringing detainees up and down stairs, chained hand and foot and blindfolded. This time, I protested to the judge, who ordered removal of the blindfold while on the stairs. The Head Warder obeys instructions implicitly and submissively (expressed in words) and all that is missing is the click of heels. Furthermore, he sits behind the detainee bending his head to listen to the exchanges between the detainee and his attorney. No one, including the lawyers, tries to prevent this, neither do they interfere, when the warder drags the detainee by his shirt out of the hearing room, while the man is still talking to his lawyer.
Judge: Major Itai Regev
Investigator: Sergeant Major Aatef Awida
Defense attorneys: Mahajna, Aabed, Abu Wassell and Samaan
1. Prohibited Ihab Awad Ahmad Shuli, ID 947594396, Asira Shamaliya, arrested 17.6.08, request: 15 days remand
Five days prohibition [from meeting with his lawyer] from 2.7.08 until midnight 6.2.08.
Advocate Aabed: this refers to an activity from 4 years ago. It was an activity of religious nature.
Decision: 15 days (no reference whatsoever to the defense attorney's mention of the 4 years).
2. Muhammad Said Yussuf Awad, ID 941188955, Awarta, arrested 16.6.08, request: 15 days
Attorney: Aabed
Decision: 15 days extension of remand.
3. Shaker Jaffar Anu Dubasha, ID 850733965, from Duma, arrested 4.6.08,
request: 16 days
Attorney: Aabed
Decision: 16 days extension of remand.
4. Prohibited Imad Samar Salah Mantsour, ID 852299981, Nablus, arrested 30.6.08,
request: 8 days
Advc. Mahajna: the detainee is a minor (born 1991). His parents do not know where he is. Requests to inform parents.
Decision: 8 days.
No attention paid to request to inform the parents.
5. Ziad Mas'oud Yusuf Dawia, ID 989396031, Nablus, arrested 17.6.08,
request: 8 days
(the detainee suffers from asthma, carries an inhaler)
Advc. Abu Wassell: the detainee was beaten during arrest, as well as in Petah Tikva last Tuesday, and he was taken to a doctor.
He fainted and the doctor gave him an injection (Mahajna intervenes to ask when the detainee was examined by the doctor, and is there a doctor's report in the file; the investigator says there is no such thing; Mahajna asks the judge to demand a medical report).
The investigator contends that he has no document regarding complaints from the detainee about beatings and repeats his request for the full number of days.)
The detainee suffers from a severe kidney disorder and low blood pressure. He began medical treatment a short time before his arrest.
When he fainted, the interrogators hit him, on his ear too, contending that he was pretending having fainted. They dragged him to the clinic of the detention center.
The investigator wants to know, who were the interrogators who hit him. Unfortunately,
the detainee could not differentiate between them or identify any of them. He only knew that they were in blue uniforms.
The investigator insists, that the detainee should say exactly who it was...
When the man was arrested, they destroyed his house, breaking doors and windows. He was also prohibited from meeting a lawyer.
Judge's ruling: this is the third remand extension. The detainee also mentioned a car accident which occurred 3 years ago, and complained about headaches. There is good reason to doubt that the various health problems actually exist. He wonders, why the beatings have not been mentioned until now, but transfers the matter to Department of Military Police Investigations. Decision: 8 days.
(we informed the Committee Against Torture about the case).
6. Iman Masoud Yusuf Dawia, ID 989396072, Nablus, arrested 17.6.08,
request: 8 days
Advc. Abu Wassell: the detainee married only a few months ago. His wife was pregnant. When they came to arrest him, they threw grenades into the house. His wife was bleeding and miscarried.
Decision: 8 days.
7. Halil Ibrahim Diab Salah, ID 916518954, Nablus, arrested 23.6.08,
request: 16 days
Advocate Mahajna.
Decision: 16 days.
A debate ensues between Advoc. Mahajna and the investigator. The investigator demands a lunch break. He says to the lawyer: "If you won't ask all your questions, we'll be through faster."
8. Muataz Balla Adib Jamil Ismail, ID 910451863, Nablus, arrested 5.6.08,
request: 16 days
Advocate Samaan: what are the charges against him?
Investigator: being a member of an [illegal] organization; connection with an activist;
attempt to prepare explosives; everything is in the classified file.
Advocate Sama'an: the detainee is a third year university student. He was prohibited from meeting his lawyer.
Decision: 16 days.
They decided on lunch break, and I left.