Of all human rights issues emanating from the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, perhaps none are as contentious as the detention of Palestinian children by Israeli authorities. Human rights organizations, including Amnesty International, Defense for Children International Palestine (DCIP), and B’Tselem, have continually decried various aspects of their detention: the conditions of detention, their treatment and finally, the applicable legal framework governing such detention.
1. Detention Statistics
Every year, 500-700 Palestinian children are detained and prosecuted in Israel’s military court system. These children, as young as 12 years old, are frequently detained based on accusations of offenses such as stone-throwing. As of September 2020, at least 157 Palestinian minors were detained as security detainees or prisoners, at least two of whom were being held under administrative detention. This is the procedure whereby persons may be detained without charge or trial for an indefinite period of time.
2. Conditions in Detention.
Reports on the conditions faced by detained Palestinian children show some alarming trends in the following:
Physical Violence: Save the Children reports that 86% of detained children report experiencing physical violence during detention.
Strip Searches and Injuries: 69% are strip-searched and 42% report injuries sustained at the time of arrest.
Psychological Trauma: The arrest, detention and mistreatment of children leave long-term psychological scars that impact their development and mental health.
These have often been treated by the global community as serious violations of international law most notably by the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child as carrying the specific protecting standards regarding Children in wars and zones of conflict.
3. Legal frame.
Israelis military legal laws are the prevalent laws throughout occupied territories of the Palestinian’s people; in that exact area living civilians of Israelis belong under Civil jurisdiction.
Military Courts: The military courts through which Palestinians are tried have been criticized as unfair and non-transparent.
Discriminatory Application: This dual set of laws has been described as apartheid by various human rights groups, including Human Rights Watch.
4. Administrative Detention
The use of administrative detention, detaining people, including minors, without charges and trial, is a very contentious practice. There are entities denouncing it against due process and human rights standards such as Amnesty International.
5. International Awareness and Support
The problem attracts great interest in the wider world, especially on various high profile junctures.
Ceasefire Deals: In ceasefire agreements and prisoner swaps between Israel and Hamas, the release of Palestinian children has often been a condition.
The Issue of Palestinian Child Detention by Israeli Authorities.
