Occupied Palestine – 500 Palestinian administrative detainees in Israeli prisons continue to boycott Israeli Military Courts for the 68th day in a row.
Palestinian prisoner advocacy groups said this step came in protest against Israeli administrative detention without charges or trials.
The Palestinian administrative detainees have been boycotting the Israeli Military Courts since January 1, 2022.
Among the 500 administrative detainees are 4 minors and a female.
The boycott includes initial hearings to uphold the administrative detention order, as well as appeal hearings and later sessions at the Supreme Court.
Sick detainees in Israeli prisons have also been boycotting prisons’ clinics, medicines, and medical check-ups.
“Our Decision is Freedom … No to Administrative Detention”
Under the banner, “Our decision is freedom … no to administrative detention,” the detainees said their move comes as a continuation of longstanding Palestinian efforts “to put an end to the unjust administrative detention.”
They noted that Israel’s use of the policy has expanded in recent years to include women, children and elderly people.
“Israeli military courts are an important aspect for the occupation in its system of oppression,” the detainees said.
They described the courts as a “barbaric, racist tool that has consumed hundreds of years from the lives of our people under the banner of administrative detention, no through nominal and fictitious courts – the results of which are predetermined by the military commander of the region”.
Since March 2002, the number of Palestinians in administrative detention has never fallen below 100.
In 2015 alone, ‘Israel’ issued 1248 administrative detention orders.
There are now 4,500 Palestinians in Israeli prisons, including 500 administrative detainees.
‘Israel’ issued 1,114 administrative detention orders in 2020.
In 2021, however, ‘Israel’ issued 1,595 administrative detention orders against the Palestinians.
In January 2022, ‘Israel’ issued 96 administrative detention orders: 51 new orders and 45 renewal orders.
The director of the Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association told Haaretz that “the authorities of the occupation are not honoring the limitations that international law has set on imposing administrative detentions.”
“They are being done arbitrarily, something that is a war crime according to the occupation laws,” Sahar Francis said.
Francis said the detainees decision came after after many efforts to battle the administrative detention policy.
The battle included hunger strikes in the past months.
The Head of the Palestinian Commission of Detainees’ Affairs also confirmed the importance of supporting the administrative detainees in their struggle.
Qadri Abu Baker stated that ‘Israel’ has practiced the policy of administrative detention increasingly against Palestinians.
This policy depends on Mock trials and based on “confidential files” without taking into consideration the standards of fair trials.
He added that ‘Israel’ prevents the detainee and his lawyer from knowing the cause of detention.
