2018 is the year of racist legislations and collective punishments

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 2018 witnessed a violent attack against detainees in Israeli jails, where the Israeli occupation authorities launched a fierce war against detainees and their families through systematic policies. These policies are represented in the policy of oppression and abuse, breaking into of the detainees' rooms and sections, administrative detention, solitary confinement, medical negligence, the detention of minors, imposition of high fines, preventing visits and prohibition of education.

The Israeli Knesset has witnessed a race among its extremist members in adopting racist and arbitrary laws against Palestinian prisoners, such as deducting salaries of martyrs and detainees, execution of detainees, terminating the funding of detainees medical treatment, displacing detainees' families far from their residence and legislating a law that prohibit the early release of detainees.

Facts and figures

(6489) detention cases during 2018

 The Israeli occupation authorities have increased the range of detention against Palestinian people, where the total number of detention cases during 2018 is (6489) cases, including: (1063) minors, (140) females, (6) deputies and (38) journalists.

Moreover, the Israeli courts issued (988) administrative detention orders, and the highest rate of detention was on January with (675) cases.

 

Geographical distribution of detention cases in 2018

The largest percentage of detention cases was in the west bank cities with (4495) cases, constituting (69.3%) of the total number of arrests during 2018. Then comes Jerusalem with (1803) cases, constituting (27.8%) of the total number. Detention cases also included arrests from Gaza strip with (191) cases, constituting (2.9%) of the total number of arrests.

By the end of 2018, there are (6000) Palestinian detainees, distributed on 22 jails and detention centers, such as: Nafha, Raymond, Jelboa, Negev, Ofer, Megiddo, Hadareem, Al-Ramlah, Ashkelon and Beersheba.

Detainees are distributed as the following:

(250) minors

(54) Females

(8) Deputies in the Legislative Council

(450) administrative detainees

(750) sick detainees who suffer from different diseases, including (200) who need an urgent medical intervention, there are also (34) who have cancer.

(87%) are detainees from West Bank, (8%) from Jerusalem and (5%) from Gaza Strip.

Long-term detainees: there are (48) detainees who spent more than 20 years in jails, including (27) who was arrested before Oslo Accord.

(217) Martyrs of the Prisoners' Movement: (5) detainees died during this year, including those who were in jail and those who died after being arrested; Yaseen Saradeeh, Azeez Ewaisat, Muhammad Anbar, Mohammad Marshood and Mohammad Al-Khateeb. Moreover, occupation authorities have retained the bodies of martyrs directly after killing them in fields without constituting any threat to the Israelis.

(23) Arab detainees who carry the Jordanian and Syrian nationalities are jailed in Israeli prisons.

Palestinian female detainees in jails

The Israeli occupation authorities increased its violations against female detainees during 2018, where the (54) females jailed at Damoon prison suffer from the violent procedures of the prison administration, in addition to the overcrowding in rooms, neglecting their medical cases, depriving them of visits and exposing them to attacks by the Nahshon forces. Moreover, they suffer from the transfer to courts in the light of transferring them from Hasharon to Damoun prison.

Despite the protests of female detainees, the prison administration continues the abusive and provocative procedures against them, and the surveillance cameras are still installed in the prison's yard and inside the sections, which restricts their freedom. (32) Female detainees have refused to go to the yard in a protest against the installation of cameras in Hasharon prison.

 

Child detainees,, sentences and fines

The international conventions on human rights, especially the Convention on the Rights of the Child, stressed on the necessity of protecting children and their lives and their chances of growth and development. However, the Israeli occupation authorities made killing and arresting Palestinian children their first choice. They still hold (250) minors the vast majority of them are held in Ofer and Majeddo prisons. They Israeli authorities practice the worst policies of torture, repression, the issuance of high sentences and fines, deprivation of family visits and prosecuting them on courts of adults. Moreover, there are nearly 100 minors from Jerusalem who got held in house detention in 2018, which caused serious social, psychological and educational effects on them and on their families.

Administrative detention

Administrative detainees conducted a hunger strike represented in boycotting the occupation courts at all levels since 15/2/2018, due to making the administrative detention a collective punishment for detainees and their families.

The step of hunger strike and the boycott is very supportive to the collective work of administrative detainees through the formation of a committee that speaks on their behalf, as well as the lawyers' commitment of not appearing before courts of occupation. However, nearly (450) administrative detainees are still held in Israeli jails including 6 elected representatives.

Medical negligence

(750) sick detainees are held in occupation prisons, they suffer from different illnesses, including (200) detainees who suffer from serious diseases and need a life-saving surgeries. (34) of them have cancer, and (70) of them suffer from physical and psychological disabilities.  In addition, there are tens of wounded detainees who were shot during their arrest.

Detentions and collective punishments

The daily arrests by the Israeli occupation forces against the Palestinians constitute a flagrant violation of the rules of international humanitarian law, international human rights law.

As part of the policy of collective punishment by the occupying power, several Palestinian families have been targeted to demolish their homes, withdraw work permits and arrest the majority of family members. The occupation state has recently adopted a policy of collective punishment against the Palestinian people, especially the families of martyrs and detainees. This policy is used by the occupation to press on Palestinian families and destroy their lives, to deter them and break their will and to stop the struggle against this racist state.

Hunger strikes

The year 2018 witnessed a battle of will and determination with the so-called "empty stomach battle" inside the Israeli jails. Cases of hunger strikers have increased individually and sometimes some of them have joined in solidarity. All strikes were as protest against the policy of administrative detention, transfer, solitary confinement and medical negligence. In this context, (39) administrative detainees have conducted hunger strike during 2018 protesting against their administrative detention, such as: Rezeq Rjoub and Kefah Khateeb.

Israel racist laws

The year 2018 witnessed a great deal of extremism by the Israeli Knesset in presenting draft laws and racist legislation against the Palestinian people in general and the captive movement in particular, including: a draft law to expel the families of operation executors, the law of deducting money paid by the Palestinian National Authority, the law of preventing the fund of detainees and wounded persons, the law of prohibiting family visits and the law of retaining martyrs bodies.

Targeting Palestinian journalists

The Israeli occupation authorities increased the targeting of Palestinian detainees and arresting activists on social media since the outbreak of "Al-Quds intifada" on October 2015. It witnessed an unprecedented repression of the freedom of opinion and expression. The occupation forces have arrested more than (40) journalists and tens of violations against them were recorded. (27) Journalists are still held in Israeli jails in an attempt to deter them and preventing them of saying the truth. They also arrested more than (350) Palestinian citizens during 2018, including females, children, journalists and authors due to posts on social media.