“… A number of policemen arrived at a grocery shop, where I was, near my house. They took me out of the shop and violently beat me. They then put me in a jeep. When the jeep moved, I refused to sit on the seat, so they violently beat me using sticks and breeches. They took me to al-‘Abbas police station, where they held me in a room. They ordered me to stand on one leg, with my face towards the wall and my hands up. A policeman used my koufia to blindfold me. A policeman also hit my head to the wall and another one beat me with a stick whenever I stood on both legs…”
PCHR calls for investigation into the use of force by the Palestinian police against a peaceful demonstration and the detention of a number of demonstrators in al-Shati refugee camp on Saturday, 24 November 2007. PCHR also calls for investigation into beating, torture and degrading treatment, to which the detainees, including a child, were subjected to.
According to investigations conducted by PCHR, at approximately 18:30 on Saturday, 24 November 2007, a number of militants traveling in a police vehicle stopped Wa’el Ahmed al-Salmi, 41, a member of the Palestinian General Intelligence from al-Shati refugee camp in the west of
Following al-Salmi’s detention, about 50 Palestinian civilians living in al-Shati refugee camp organized a peaceful demonstration that moved towards the house of the dismissed Prime Minister Isma’il Haniya, calling for al-Salmi’s release. Soon, the guards of the house attacked the demonstrators. They used sticks to disperse them. Later on the same day, the Palestinian police waged an arrest campaign in the vicinity of al-Shati Sport Club, during which they arrested a number of those who participated in the peaceful demonstration, including a 14-year-old child. A number of detainees, who were released later, including the child, stated that they were subjected to beating and inhuman and degrading treatment during interrogation.
In his testimony to PCHR, the child stated:
“… A number of policemen arrived at a grocery shop, where I was, near my house. They took me out of the shop and violently beat me. They then put me in a jeep. When the jeep moved, I refused to sit on the seat, so they violently beat me using sticks and breeches. They took me to al-‘Abbas police station, where they held me in a room. They ordered me to stand on one leg, with my face towards the wall and my hands up. A policeman used my koufia to blindfold me. A policeman also hit my head to the wall and another one beat me with a stick whenever I stood on both legs…”
All detainees were released later, excluding al-Salmi as well as Islam Yassin who went to the police station to ensure the child’s release. The spokesman of the Ministry of Interior in
In light of the above:
1) PCHR reiterates its strong condemnation for torture and calls for investigating such practices and taking legal action against the perpetrators to ensure their non-recurrence.
2) PCHR reminds that torture is outlawed by Palestinian Law, and is a grave human rights violation under international human rights instruments, especially the Convention against Torture and Other Forms of Cruel, Inhumane, or Degrading Treatment (1984).
3) PCHR stresses that the right to peaceful assembly is ensured by the Palestinian Basic Law and the Law of Public Meetings of 1998, provided that the peaceful nature of an activity is maintained.
Public Document
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For more information please call PCHR office in
PCHR, 29 Omer El Mukhtar St., El Remal, PO Box 1328 Gaza, Gaza Strip. E-mail: pchr@pchrgaza.org, Webpage http://www.pchrgaza.org
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