URGENT APPEAL: Five administrative detention orders for Ahmed Mijermi (17) UPDATE June 2009
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25-4-2009
UA - 2/09 – URGENT APPEAL – DCI-Palestine
Name: Ahmed Nouh Yunis Mijermi
Age at arrest: 17
Occupation: Student
Place of residence: Jenin Refugee Camp, Occupied Palestinian Territory
Date of arrest: 25 October 2007
Charge: No charge
Place of detention: Ofer Prison, Occupied Palestinian Territory
UPDATE: June 2009
Unknown Possible release date
30 May 2009 No new administrative detention order but not released
30 November 2008 Fifth administrative detention order (6 months)
31 August 2008 Fourth administrative detention order (3 months)
29 May 2008 Third administrative detention order (3 months)
30 March 2008 Second administrative detention order (2 months)
9 December 2007 First administrative detention order (4 months)
25 October 2007 Date of arrest
Background Information
Ahmed Mijermi was arrested from the family home in the Jenin refugee camp, in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT) at around 3:00am on 25 October 2007. He was woken by the sound of explosions and breaking glass. Approximately 10 Israeli soldiers entered the house and ordered the family outside.
Once outside, Ahmed was handcuffed with plastic ties and blindfolded. He was still in his pyjamas. He was then placed on the floor of a military jeep and transferred to Al Jalame checkpoint, near Jenin. Ahmed was pulled out of the jeep at the checkpoint and made to sit on the ground, still handcuffed and blindfolded. He remained like this for around two hours, before being transferred to Salem Interrogation and Detention Centre, north of Jenin. He remained at the Detention Centre for five days without being interrogated.
On 30 October 2007, Ahmed was transferred to Al Jalame Interrogation and Detention Centre inside Israel, where he was interrogated for one hour whilst still handcuffed. The interrogator told him that other people had confessed against him alleging that he had been approached to carry out militant activities. Ahmed maintains that he refused to carry out any militant activities.
On 1 and 25 November 2007 Ahmed was taken to the Israeli military court at Salem, in the OPT, which extended the period of his detention so that he could be further interrogated. In early December 2007, Ahmed was charged with conspiracy to commit a crime that carried a maximum penalty in excess of three years imprisonment. However, on 6 December 2007, a military court judge ordered that Ahmed should be released on bail of 5,000 NIS (US$1,250). Before Ahmed could be released, the military prosecutor asked for a stay of the order for 72 hours. On 9 December 2007, instead of being released, Ahmed was issued with his first administrative detention order for four months.
On 30 March 2008, the military court concluded the conspiracy case against Ahmed by sentencing him to time already served and a suspended sentence of 24 months. On the same day, Ahmed received a second administrative detention order for two months which alleged that he was a member of Islamic Jihad and ‘a danger to the security of the area’, but without providing any further details. Two months later, on 29 May 2008, Ahmed was given a third administrative detention order followed by a fourth order on 31 August 2008. On 30 November 2008, Ahmed was given a fifth administrative detention order for a period of six months.
Ahmed’s fifth administrative detention order is set to expire on 30 May 2009, when he will either be released or issued with a sixth administrative detention order.
Administrative detention
Administrative detention is detention without charge or trial and is often based on ‘secret evidence’. Israeli Military Order 1591 empowers military commanders to detain Palestinians, including children as young as 12, for up to six months if they have ‘reasonable grounds to presume that the security of the area or public security require the detention’. The initial six month period can be extended by additional six-month periods indefinitely. This procedure denies the detainee the right to a fair trial and the ability to adequately challenge the basis of his or her detention.
There are currently over 560 Palestinians in administrative detention of which two are children. At least five other persons, including Ahmed, have turned 18 in prison since receiving their first administrative detention orders. For more information visit the DCI-Palestine website at Freedom Now.
Recommended action
The detention of a child in these circumstances does not conform to Israel’s obligations under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights or the Fourth Geneva Convention. Please send Urgent Appeals to the Israeli authorities prior to 30 May 2009, urging them to:
* Immediately cease the practice of holding persons under the age of 18 in administrative detention; and
* Immediately and unconditionally release Ahmed Mijermi from administrative detention, or charge him with a recognisable criminal offence and promptly try him in a proper court of law with internationally accepted standards for a fair trial.
Appeals to:
Prime Minister
Office of the Prime Minister
3 Kaplan Street, PO Box 187, Kiryat Ben-Gurion, Jerusalem, 91919, Israel
Fax: +972- 2-651 2631
Email: rohm@pmo.gov.il, pm_eng@pmo.gov.il
Salutation: Dear Prime Minister
Ehud Barak
Minister of Defence, Ministry of Defence,
37 Kaplan Street, Hakirya, Tel Aviv 61909, Israel
Fax: +972 3 691 6940
Email: minister@mod.gov.il
Salutation: Dear Minister
Minister of Justice, Fax: + 972 2 628 7757; + 972 2 628 8618
Attorney General, Fax: + 972 2 627 4481; + 972 2 628 5438; +972 2 530 3367
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