RFS_Br
FULL MEMBER
- Joined
- Jun 1, 2012
- Messages
- 1,237
- Reaction score
- 0
- Country
- Location
Israeli security forces accused of targeting Palestinian children to gather intelligence - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)
Children are being intimidated and forced into false confessions by Israeli soldiers in the West Bank, according to allegations to be broadcast tonight on the ABC's Four Corners program.
A joint investigation between Four Corners and The Australian newspaper has examined the treatment of Palestinian children in Israel's military court system.
More than 720,000 Palestinian men, women and children have been through the system since Israel began occupying the Palestinian Territories in 1967.
Four Corners looks at claims the Israeli army is arresting hundreds of Palestinian children during night raids for alleged crimes, such as throwing stones at Israeli soldiers and settlers.
Israel's security services have also been accused by lawyers and youth workers of using Palestinian children to gather intelligence.
Israel's international spokesman Yigal Palmor confirmed that there was a pattern of trying to gather information from children beyond the specific accusation but said this was "perfectly legitimate".
Palestinian children allege they received electric shocks
Qsai Zamara, 14, says he was taken from his bed during a night raid on his family home in a Palestinian village and then taken to prison by the Israeli army.
VIDEO: Reporter John Lyons discusses the story (ABC News)
He has told Four Corners he was whipped and threatened into falsely confessing that he threw stones at the army.
"There was this big machine with all the electric wires in it, connected to the electricity. He wanted to give me electric shock with it," he said.
Fathi Mahfouz says he was arrested when he was 15 for something he did not do and taken to prison, where he was given electric shocks.
"Because I didn't confess he sent me to a room that has a cross in it, and hung me on it. I was hung and he kept hitting me," he said.
Australian barrister Gerard Horton has interviewed hundreds of Palestinian children through his organisation Military Court Watch and says he has been told of torture and interrogation ordeals.
"[In one incident] someone put food on his genitals and the dog was then made to eat the food off that part of his trousers," Mr Horton said.
"[One] particular interrogator specialises in threatening children with rape, and he makes very specific allegations.
"He will name someone who apparently is waiting outside the interrogation room who will, if the child doesn't confess, will come in and rape that child."
Information helps prevent violence, Israeli spokesman says
Prominent Israeli lawyer Gaby Lasky, who specialises in cases of Palestinian children before Israel's military court, said as part of intelligence gathering the Israeli army had begun "mapping" children.
This involved waking children at night, photographing them, checking their identity papers and asking which beds they sleep in.
Ms Lasky says security forces frequently begin interrogations by asking about claims of stone throwing then dig more broadly for intelligence.
The joint Four Corners-The Australian investigation has obtained pictures of Israeli soldiers mapping children.
"There has to be a pattern because the interrogators will want to gather information about possible violence emerging from a certain area or from certain people," Israel's international spokesman Yigal Palmor told Four Corners.
"And I think that's perfectly legitimate to ask people who are arrested for being involved in violent actions, to ask them where they come from, why they have been involved in such violent actions, who sent them and whether there are more people coming from the same place with the same intent."
He said children had been used by Palestinian militants or terrorists in order to carry out violent attacks.
"And when they are arrested they are being questioned about the motivations of those who sent them, about the plans of those who sent them, about the general activities of those who sent them, in order to prevent other such activities, in order to prevent more minors being involved in violence," he said.
Claims Israel tried to recruit Palestinian children as informants
Ms Lasky said children were being used to incriminate leaders of the non-violent opposition movement in the West Bank because they were "the weakest link".
Asked if the Israeli security services were using children to gather intelligence, Ms Lasky replied: "100 per cent so."
Ms Lasky's assertion has been backed by the director of the YMCA near Bethlehem, Nader Abu Amsha, who deals with many of the 700 Palestinian children detained each year by the Israeli army.
He said children were being used to gather intelligence and that this was "breaking children forever".
Or sometimes there are offers of money, generally not a great deal of money, but the child can be offered money, mobile phone, threatened sometimes, if the child will not, in order to get that child to provide information in the future.
Australian barrister Gerard Horton
Ms Lasky's claim has also been supported by Mr Horton.
Mr Horton, who has taken hundreds of affidavits from Palestinian children, said in some cases attempts were made to recruit children to be informants.
He said in some interrogations the security services tried not only to find out who might be throwing stones in the village - the reason given for the child's arrest - but made it clear to the children that they could be released immediately "if you just from time to time provide us with a little bit of information about who the troublemakers in the village are".
"Or sometimes there are offers of money, generally not a great deal of money, but the child can be offered money, mobile phone, threatened sometimes, if the child will not, in order to get that child to provide information in the future."
Palestinian children being damaged by questioning: YMCA
The YMCA's Nader Abu Amsha said questioning children about their communities was causing psychological damage to children.
"They (Israeli security services) are trying to know information about the village and about the life of people, the families, the attitudes of the community," he said.
Mr Amsha said: "The most vicious and the most horrible thing [is] to push people to collaborate as collaborators with occupiers, to put them under the stick and carrot process.
"If you reject this, if you are [to] refuse this, you will be punished, you will stay longer in prison and if you accept being a collaborator... you will receive some kind of rewards and you will be dealt with differently and you will be happy.
"So this kind of converting a child who's not responsible for his act to be a collaborator is not just helping in information gathering for the Israelis it's breaking this child forever."
[The report can be watched here.]
@ModerAdmin If you could fix the title, I'd really appreciate it.
Children are being intimidated and forced into false confessions by Israeli soldiers in the West Bank, according to allegations to be broadcast tonight on the ABC's Four Corners program.
A joint investigation between Four Corners and The Australian newspaper has examined the treatment of Palestinian children in Israel's military court system.
More than 720,000 Palestinian men, women and children have been through the system since Israel began occupying the Palestinian Territories in 1967.
Four Corners looks at claims the Israeli army is arresting hundreds of Palestinian children during night raids for alleged crimes, such as throwing stones at Israeli soldiers and settlers.
Israel's security services have also been accused by lawyers and youth workers of using Palestinian children to gather intelligence.
Israel's international spokesman Yigal Palmor confirmed that there was a pattern of trying to gather information from children beyond the specific accusation but said this was "perfectly legitimate".
Palestinian children allege they received electric shocks
Qsai Zamara, 14, says he was taken from his bed during a night raid on his family home in a Palestinian village and then taken to prison by the Israeli army.
VIDEO: Reporter John Lyons discusses the story (ABC News)
He has told Four Corners he was whipped and threatened into falsely confessing that he threw stones at the army.
"There was this big machine with all the electric wires in it, connected to the electricity. He wanted to give me electric shock with it," he said.
Fathi Mahfouz says he was arrested when he was 15 for something he did not do and taken to prison, where he was given electric shocks.
"Because I didn't confess he sent me to a room that has a cross in it, and hung me on it. I was hung and he kept hitting me," he said.
Australian barrister Gerard Horton has interviewed hundreds of Palestinian children through his organisation Military Court Watch and says he has been told of torture and interrogation ordeals.
"[In one incident] someone put food on his genitals and the dog was then made to eat the food off that part of his trousers," Mr Horton said.
"[One] particular interrogator specialises in threatening children with rape, and he makes very specific allegations.
"He will name someone who apparently is waiting outside the interrogation room who will, if the child doesn't confess, will come in and rape that child."
Information helps prevent violence, Israeli spokesman says
Prominent Israeli lawyer Gaby Lasky, who specialises in cases of Palestinian children before Israel's military court, said as part of intelligence gathering the Israeli army had begun "mapping" children.
This involved waking children at night, photographing them, checking their identity papers and asking which beds they sleep in.
Ms Lasky says security forces frequently begin interrogations by asking about claims of stone throwing then dig more broadly for intelligence.
The joint Four Corners-The Australian investigation has obtained pictures of Israeli soldiers mapping children.
"There has to be a pattern because the interrogators will want to gather information about possible violence emerging from a certain area or from certain people," Israel's international spokesman Yigal Palmor told Four Corners.
"And I think that's perfectly legitimate to ask people who are arrested for being involved in violent actions, to ask them where they come from, why they have been involved in such violent actions, who sent them and whether there are more people coming from the same place with the same intent."
He said children had been used by Palestinian militants or terrorists in order to carry out violent attacks.
"And when they are arrested they are being questioned about the motivations of those who sent them, about the plans of those who sent them, about the general activities of those who sent them, in order to prevent other such activities, in order to prevent more minors being involved in violence," he said.
Claims Israel tried to recruit Palestinian children as informants
Ms Lasky said children were being used to incriminate leaders of the non-violent opposition movement in the West Bank because they were "the weakest link".
Asked if the Israeli security services were using children to gather intelligence, Ms Lasky replied: "100 per cent so."
Ms Lasky's assertion has been backed by the director of the YMCA near Bethlehem, Nader Abu Amsha, who deals with many of the 700 Palestinian children detained each year by the Israeli army.
He said children were being used to gather intelligence and that this was "breaking children forever".
Or sometimes there are offers of money, generally not a great deal of money, but the child can be offered money, mobile phone, threatened sometimes, if the child will not, in order to get that child to provide information in the future.
Australian barrister Gerard Horton
Ms Lasky's claim has also been supported by Mr Horton.
Mr Horton, who has taken hundreds of affidavits from Palestinian children, said in some cases attempts were made to recruit children to be informants.
He said in some interrogations the security services tried not only to find out who might be throwing stones in the village - the reason given for the child's arrest - but made it clear to the children that they could be released immediately "if you just from time to time provide us with a little bit of information about who the troublemakers in the village are".
"Or sometimes there are offers of money, generally not a great deal of money, but the child can be offered money, mobile phone, threatened sometimes, if the child will not, in order to get that child to provide information in the future."
Palestinian children being damaged by questioning: YMCA
The YMCA's Nader Abu Amsha said questioning children about their communities was causing psychological damage to children.
"They (Israeli security services) are trying to know information about the village and about the life of people, the families, the attitudes of the community," he said.
Mr Amsha said: "The most vicious and the most horrible thing [is] to push people to collaborate as collaborators with occupiers, to put them under the stick and carrot process.
"If you reject this, if you are [to] refuse this, you will be punished, you will stay longer in prison and if you accept being a collaborator... you will receive some kind of rewards and you will be dealt with differently and you will be happy.
"So this kind of converting a child who's not responsible for his act to be a collaborator is not just helping in information gathering for the Israelis it's breaking this child forever."
[The report can be watched here.]
@ModerAdmin If you could fix the title, I'd really appreciate it.
Last edited:
