The Governing Council of the Inter-Parliamentary Union,

Referring to the case of the above-mentioned parliamentarians, all of whom were elected to the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) in January 2006, and to the resolution it adopted at its 194th session (March 2014),

Recalling that the parliamentarians concerned were elected to the Palestinian Legislative Council on the Electoral Platform for Change and Reform and arrested following the kidnapping of an Israeli soldier on 25 June 2006, that they were prosecuted and found guilty of membership in a terrorist organization (Hamas), holding a seat in parliament on behalf of that organization, providing services to it by sitting on parliamentary committees, and supporting an illegal organization, and that they were sentenced to prison terms of up to 40 months,

Noting that, while most of the parliamentarians concerned were released upon having served their sentences, many were subsequently rearrested, sometimes several times, and placed in administrative detention,

Considering that, according to information provided on 14 September 2014 by one of the complainants, although the number of PLC members in administrative detention had dwindled to five by March 2013, they now numbered 26, with many arrests having taken place since June 2014 following the abduction, with the Israeli authorities blaming Hamas, of three Israeli teenagers, who were later found to have been killed,

Considering that, in the face of escalating violence in the region, the United Nations Human Rights Council convened a special session on 23 July 2014 and adopted a resolution on the question of “Ensuring respect for international law in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem”, in which it expressed “deep concern at the condition of Palestinian prisoners and detainees in Israeli jails and detention centres, in particular following the arrest by Israel of more than 1,000 Palestinians since 13 June 2014, and calls upon Israel, the occupying Power, to immediately release all Palestinian prisoners whose detention is not in accordance with international law, including all children and all members of the Palestinian Legislative Council”,

Considering that in the first half of 2014, one of the complainants referred to the hunger strike which started in April 2014 of 125 Palestinians in administrative detention in Israel. According to the complainant, PLC members Mr. Mahmoud Al-Ramahi, Mr. Hatem Qfeisheh, Mr. Mohammad Jamal Al-Natsheh, Mr. Abdul Jaber Fuqaha, Mr. Nizar Ramadan and Mr. Mohammed Maher Badr were part of this group; the complainant affirms that the Israeli Prison Service (IPS) responded to the strikers by carrying out violent raids and searches of their cells, transferring them from one prison to another and punishing them, including through denial of family visits and of access to the prison yard and the confiscation of newspapers or books; in this context, the complainant affirms that Mr. Mohammad Jamal Al-Natsheh was beaten in detention; it also affirms that lawyers were being systematically denied access to the detainees on strike; the hunger strike ended on 25 June 2014, reportedly after minor concessions, but no major change of policy from Israel,

Recalling that, with regard to the use of administrative detention:

• The Supreme Court of Israel has ruled that the exceptional measure of administrative detention, which is usually ordered for six months, but can, in fact, be prolonged indefinitely, can only be applied if there is current and reliable information to show that the person poses a specific and concrete threat, or if the confidential nature of the intelligence and the security of the sources prohibit the presentation of evidence in an ordinary criminal procedure; according to the Israeli authorities there are two avenues of judicial review, namely the independent and impartial military courts, which have the authority to assess the material relevant to the detainee in question in order to determine whether the decision to detain him/her was reasonable given his/her general rights to a fair trial and freedom of movement, and military prosecution, which implements a “cautious and level-headed” policy in the use of administrative detention; this approach is said to have reduced the number of administrative detention orders;

• Human rights organizations in and outside Israel have repeatedly stressed that administrative detention is usually justified by reference to a “security threat”, without, however, specifying the scope and nature of the threat or disclosing the evidence; accordingly, although administrative detainees are entitled to appeal, this right is ineffective, given that the detainees and their lawyers do not have access to the information on which the orders are based and are therefore unable to present a meaningful defence,

Considering that, on 20 August 2014, PLC member Ms. Khalida Jarrar was reportedly ordered, according to the complainant based on secret information that she is a threat to the security of the area, to leave her home in Ramallah and to move to Jericho for the next six months. According to recent unofficial reports, following an appeal against the decision, the military court reduced the expulsion order from six months to one month,

Recalling also the following information on file with regard to the revocation of the residence permits of three PLC members: In May 2006, the Israeli Minister of the Interior revoked the East Jerusalem residence permits of Mr. Muhammad Abu-Teir, Mr. Muhammad Totah and Mr. Ahmad Attoun, arguing that they had shown disloyalty to Israel by holding seats in the PLC; the order was not implemented, owing to their arrest in June 2006; after their release in May/June 2010, the three men were immediately notified that they had to leave East Jerusalem; Mr. Abu-Teir was ordered to leave by 19 June 2010 and, refusing to do so, was arrested on 30 June 2010 and later deported to the West Bank; the other two parliamentarians were ordered to leave by 3 July 2010 and, likewise refusing to comply with the order, took refuge in the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) building in Jerusalem, from which they were removed by the Israeli authorities on 26 September 2011 and 23 January 2012, respectively,

Bearing in mind, lastly, that, in its concluding observations on the third periodic report of Israel under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights,^* the United Nations Human Rights Committee recommended, inter alia, that all persons under Israel’s jurisdiction and effective control be afforded full enjoyment of the rights enshrined in the Covenant,

1. Is alarmed at the recent wave of arrests of PLC members, thus bringing the total number of PLC members held in administrative detention to 26; deplores this situation, which not only prevents the parliamentarians concerned – a fifth of the Council’s total membership – from carrying out the mandate for which they were elected, but also greatly impairs the right of the Palestinian people to be represented by persons of their choice;

2. Considers in this regard that the continued practice of administrative detention is bound to impede the proper functioning of the Palestinian Legislative Council, as its members can be arrested at any time and placed in administrative detention for as long as the Israeli military authorities wish;

3. Calls on the Israeli authorities therefore to abandon the practice of administrative detention and either to release the members of the Palestinian Legislative Council being held in administrative detention forthwith or, should there be concrete and convincing proof of criminal involvement, to prosecute them in full accordance with normal criminal procedure;

4. Is deeply concerned about allegations that the Israeli authorities took reprisals against and intimidated those who started a hunger strike earlier this year aimed at putting an end to their administrative detention; is particularly concerned about allegations that Mr. Mohammad Jamal Al-Natsheh was beaten in detention; wishes to receive the views of the Israeli authorities on these allegations;

5. Wishes to receive official information regarding the reported conviction of and 12-month prison term for PLC member Mr. Husni Al Borini, and should he have indeed been sentenced, a copy of the ruling, as well as the criminal charges brought against detained PLC members Mr. Riyadgh Radad, Mr. Abdul Rahman Zaidan and Mr. Fathi Qaraa'wi and, should charges exist, to receive details of their nature and the facts to support them;

6. Is concerned that Ms. Khalida Jarrar was reportedly ordered to leave her home in Ramallah and to move to Jericho for six months, which duration was reportedly subsequently brought down to one month; wishes to receive the official views on this matter including, should the existence of the order be confirmed, on the justification and legal grounds for the order;

7. Remains deeply concerned that Mr. Totah, Mr. Abu-Teir and Mr. Attoun were effectively removed from East Jerusalem; reiterates its long-standing concerns about the decision to revoke their residence permits and the manner of its implementation; considers that the revocation is at odds with the Hague Convention (IV) of October 1907 on the rules of customary international law, article 45 of which stipulates that the inhabitants of an occupied territory, of which East Jerusalem may be considered an example, are not to be compelled to swear allegiance to the occupying power;

8. Requests the Secretary General to convey this decision to the relevant authorities, the complainant and any third party likely to be in a position to supply relevant information;

9. Requests the Committee to continue examining this case and to report back to it in due course.

---

* According to the press, Mr. Hasan Yousef was freed on 19 January 2014. * CCPR/C/ISR/CO/3.

---

---

Note: you can download a complete electronic version of the brochure "Results of the 131th Assembly and related meetings of the Inter-Parliamentary Union" in PDF format (file size 1026 Kb). This version requires Adobe Acrobat Reader, which you can download free of charge.

HOME PAGEIPU ASSEMBLYMAIN AREAS OF ACTIVITYIPU STRUCTURE AND DOCUMENTS