Israel Matzav

Israel gets its own taser video

The video you're about to see below shows Israeli border police tasering Yitzhar resident Boaz Albert. Albert, a father of six, was served with an administrative order forbidding his presence in Judea and and Samaria on August 15. This video was shot that night in Albert's home.

For the Hebrew-impaired, the shouts you hear are:

1. (Apparently Albert's wife) asking to let her remove one of the children so that he does not see his father electric-shocked.
2. Albert himself asking why they are breaking his hand and electrocuting him when he is not resisting arrest.
3. (Apparently a neighbor) asking why is he being dragged out - what has he done.

I don't know what's behind the administrative order, but this video, which has been seen by many here in Israel, is having an effect.

Let's go to the videotape. More after the video.



The police have suspended the use of tasers.

National Police Chief Yochanan Danino suspended the use of tasers by police while investigators from the police operational branch examine their use by officers.

The appointment of the investigative team on Sunday follows the arrest Thursday night of settler Boaz Albert, carried out by YASSAM officers from the Judea and Samaria District police. The officers delivered electric shocks to Albert's chest as he lay on his back in his home surrounded by police.

... 

MK Orit Struck (Bayit Yehudi) on Saturday night said that such administrative restraining orders must be stopped, because they are issued without any judicial procedures and without any explanation.

In 2007, the Knesset plenum approved a declaration against administrative restraining orders issued without judicial procedures, Struck said. It garnered support from many of the parties in the Knesset including Likud, Kadima, Shas, United Torah Judaism, Yisrael Beitenu, National Union, Labor and Meretz, Struck said.

But, she said, the Knesset’s declaration must now be turned into law.

“I call on everyone who cares about human rights to protest against the arrest of Boaz Albert whose only crime is his conscientious and justified refusal to obey an administrative detention order that is anti-democratic and immoral,” she said.

...

Judea and Samaria police said on Thursday night, that the district's YASSAM unit tried to arrest Albert when another man appeared and attempted to prevent the arrest. The decision was made to use force and a taser was used against him, a spokesman said.

“Boaz Albert did not resist arrest,” the spokesman added.

On Friday, police described the incident as follows: “Last night, officers from the Judea and Samaria District’s YASSAM unit carried out an arrest of a person violating an administrative restraining order for the third time. In the video you can see that it has been edited and is biased, but if we ignore that we can still observe the police conducting themselves with determination and without the use of violence, in keeping with regulations.”

What a load of lies. They used a taser gun to arrest a suspect who was not resisting who was served with an order that was never brought before a judge. 'Without the use of violence'? Watch the video (which deserves to go viral) again for yourselves.

A District Court in Lod ordered Albert released on Friday, but his restraining order still stands.

...

Attorney Yitzhak Baum wrote a letter to the police said that according to the law, the gun could only be used when a suspect is resisting arrest.

“In this case, the suspect is lying on the floor and did not resist arrest,” Baum wrote.

And you thought Israel was a democracy....

In the aftermath of the Rabin assassination, administrative detentions were widely used against the opponents of Oslo. This Wikipedia article gives the impression that they are only used against 'Palestinians,' but that's just not so.

The legal basis for Israel's use of Administrative Detention is the British Mandate 1945 Law on Authority in States of Emergency' as amended in 1979. Administrative detention is often used for indefinite detention of Palestinian political prisoners.^[20] According to Addameer, Israel held 285 Palestinians in administrative detention in June 2012.^[21] Eighteen of them were members of parliament, out of 4,706 political prisoners. According to B'Tselem, as of April 2012, about 308 Palestinians were being held under administrative detention by the Israel Prisons Service and statistics on those held by the IDF were unavailable.^[22] According to the Israel Prison Service figures for December 2012, 178 Palestinians were being held in administrative detention (without charge or trial).^[23] Administrative detention seems to be mainly used by Israel against individuals not engaged in violent activities.^[24] Administrative detention is also used in cases where the available evidence consists of information obtained by the security services (particularly the Shin Bet), and where a trial would reveal sensitive security information, such as the identities of informers or infiltrators.

Although it is commonly applied to alleged Palestinian militants, it has in the past also a few times been applied to Jewish Israeli citizens, including Jewish right-wing public-figures and activists (e.g. in the aftermath of the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin) and in more recent years sometimes to settlers for short periods.^[25]

Within Israel, the Defense Minister has the authority to issue Administrative Detention orders for up to 6 months in cases where there is a reasonable chance that the person harms the security of the state. The same Minister has the authority to renew such orders. Likewise, the Chief of the General Staff can issue such orders, but valid for only 48 hours. Law enforcement authorities have to show cause within 48 hours (in a hearing behind closed doors).

Administrative Detention orders can be appealed to the District Court and, if denied there, to the Supreme Court of Israel. The District Court can annul such orders if it finds the administrative detention occurred for reasons other than security (e.g., common crimes, or the exercise of freedom of expression). Overall supervisory authority on the application of the relevant law rests with the Minister of Justice.

Within the West Bank and Gaza Strip, any local army commander can issue an administrative detention order, and the order can be appealed at the local military court, or, if denied there, at the Supreme Court. Here too, an administrative detention order is valid for at most six months, but can be renewed by the appropriate authority. Israel refers its use of administrative detention in the occupied territories to Article 78 of the Fourth Geneva Convention 1949, which states that "If the Occupying Power considers it necessary, for imperative reasons of security, to take safety measures concerning protected persons, it may, at the most, subject them to assigned residence or to internment."^[26]

In the aftermath of the Rabin assassination, I argued with someone that administrative detention should be abolished. Yes, even for 'Palestinians.' It's nothing but an excuse for prosecutorial laziness. If you want to hold someone, charge him with something. If you can't charge him with something, you shouldn't hold him. Judges hear 'secret evidence' all the time in every western country. And orders telling people to stay away from certain areas ought to be only to protect persons in those areas (e.g. abused spouses) and not because the police want to punish a man by keeping him away from his own home.

One other thing that should be pointed out. The Yassam unit of the border police is notorious for brutality and for its membership largely consisting of 'minorities' (Druze and Bedouin Arabs who are less than sympathetic to Israeli Jews). They were the perpetrators of the Amona incident seven years ago. Sadly, the government has done nothing to curb their brutality since. It's time for that to change.

And you thought Israel was a democracy? Well, it's still the closest thing to a democracy in the Middle East, but it's government is less than representative and its 'civil rights' leave a lot to be desired. Even for Jews.

Labels: Israeli border police, revenants, Yitzhar

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 12:25 PM