Gaza, ALRAY - Half of the Palestinian administrative prisoners, who are about 200, have spent more than one year in administrative detention, Palestine's Prisoners Center for Studies revealed.
Reyad Al Ashqar, spokesman of the center explained that “the IPS uses the administrative detention policy in order to hold prisoners for extended periods of time without charging them or allowing them to stand trial."
Administrative detention orders are issued either at the time of arrest or at a later date and are often based on “secret information” collected by the Israeli Security Agency (formerly known as the General Security Service). In the vast majority of administrative detention cases, neither the detainee nor his lawyer is ever informed of the reasons for the detention or given access to the “secret information”.
He added “administrative detention turns the prisoners to political hostages; their detention is renewed by mock and nominal courts instructed by Israeli security agency who holds this file."
He pointed that the administrative detention orders have been renewed for about 65 prisoners for four times in a row, 32 prisoners for 3 times, 39 prisoners for twice .
Palestinians could be detained for months, if not years, under administrative detention orders, without ever being informed about the reasons or length of their detention. Detainees are routinely informed of the extension of their detention on the day that the former order expires. Under the existing administrative detention procedures, Palestinians have no effective means by which to challenge their administrative detention.
Alashqar said that International law allowed the use of administrative detention within very narrow limits, if there is a serious danger that threatens the 'National Security', for a limited period, without renewal, and prisoners should know the reason behind his arrest .
He continued “Occupation authorities use this sort of detention as a deliberate policy and practice violating all the principles of the International humanitarian law; they arrest Palestinian civilians without specific charge or trial, based on secret information that prisoner and his lawyers are not allowed to know, what prevents them from crystallizing an effective and influential defense. It always happens to renew the Administrative detention and for many times.
Alashqer highlighted the issue of the administrative prisoners who have been on an open hunger strike for the sixth day, protesting the illegality of Israeli administrative dentition policy. He demanded Israeli occupation authorities to apply the article 9 of the International Convention on Civil and Political Rights.
Palestinian Prisoners center demanded to organize an international human right campaign that shows the illegality of Administrative detention and reveals the serious violations of the strict parameters established by international law.
Administrative detention is the most extreme measure that international humanitarian law allows an occupying power to use against residents of occupied territory. As such, states are not allowed to use it in a sweeping manner. To the contrary, administrative detention may be used against protected persons in occupied territory only for “imperative reasons of security” .
