Israel ends 'administrative detention', a rule protecting Palestinians from Jewish settler violence

Israeli authorities announced Friday (November 22) they will no longer hold Jewish settlers in the occupied West Bank under administrative detention, a practice that allows detention without charges or trial. The policy has primarily been used against Palestinians deemed security threats by Israel.

The country’s Defence Minister Israel Katz said it was “inappropriate” for Israel to employ administrative detention against settlers who “face severe Palestinian terror threats and unjustified international sanctions”.

The practice of administrative detention allows for detainees to be held for long periods without being charged or appear in court.

Scrapping a rule that prevents settler attacks against Palestinians

According to settlement watchdog Peace Now, it is one of only few effective tools that Israeli authorities to prevent settler attacks against Palestinians, which have surged in the West Bank over the past year.

AFP quoted Yonatan Mizrahi, director of settlement watch for Peace Now, as saying that although administrative detention was mostly used in the West Bank to detain Palestinians, it was one of the few effective tools for temporarily removing the threat of settler violence through detention.

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Katz said in a statement issued by his office that prosecution or “other preventive measures” would be used to deal with criminal acts in the West Bank.

Administrative detention: What numbers say

While the decision taken by Israel stops administrative detention for Jewish settlers illegally occupying Palestinian lands, it is actually frequently used against Palestinians who Israel deems security threats.

Administrative detention is employed extensively against Palestinians, according to the Israeli rights group B’Tselem, which says thousands have been held for prolonged periods without trial.

The Palestinian Prisoners Club advocacy group reported in August that 3,432 Palestinians were in administrative detention.

In contrast, the Israeli daily Haaretz reported that eight Jewish settlers were held under the practice in November.

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No announcements have been made about stopping putting an end to administrative detention for Palestinians.

“The cancellation of administrative detention orders for settlers alone is a cynical… move that whitewashes and normalises escalating Jewish terrorism under the cover of war,” Peace Now said in a statement, referring to a spike in settler attacks throughout the Israel-Hamas conflict over the past 13 months.

The West Bank, which Israel has occupied since 1967, is home to about 3 million Palestinians and 490,000 Israeli settlers. The settlements are considered illegal under international law.

With inputs from agencies