At around midnight I was on my way home from the barber’s shop where I work when I was surprised by clashes between Israeli soldiers and some young men who were throwing stones at them.

 

I stopped to have a look and a group of soldiers ambushed me and another boy. About 20 soldiers chased me, caught me and immediately started to beat, kick and punch me. I tried to tell them that I had my spleen removed following a car accident but they did not make any attempt to understand what I was saying. They swore at me saying my sister and mother were "whores" and swore at my religion.

 

The soldiers tied my hands behind my back with metal handcuffs which were very tight and painful. I lost sensation in my thumb and could not move it for about a week. They accused me of throwing stones and then pushed me into the back of a military jeep and threw me on the metal floor.

 

The jeep drove to the police station in Binyamin settlement where I was taken to a room. The soldiers made me turn my face to the wall and banned me from talking to anyone. Another detainee was in the same room and he was bleeding heavily from his head and I was scared and worried about him.  He was left to bleed for two hours without any medical attention. When I complained about the handcuffs a soldier replaced them with one plastic tie to the front which was also painful. When I complained again the soldier looked at me and did nothing.

 

At around 2:30 a.m. I was taken for interrogation. The interrogator was in civilian clothes. There was a tape recorder on his desk. He removed the tie and asked me what I was doing in the area where I was arrested and I explained what had happened. Then he asked me about the other young men and boys who were throwing stones and I told him I did not know them. He also told me a soldier had seen me with a stone in my hand and I denied it.

 

The interrogation lasted for about 30 minutes. Half way through the interrogation the interrogator gave me a document written in both Arabic and Hebrew saying I had the right to consult with a lawyer and that I was only allowed to speak in response to the interrogator’s questions. He also called my brother and asked him to appoint a lawyer for me.

 

After the interrogation I was searched with my clothes on and kept in the same room with the other detainee until around 6:00 a.m. During this time I was allowed to use the toilet but a soldier accompanied me.

 

At around 6:00 a.m. I was taken to a military base near Al-Ram. On the way the soldiers made me cover my face with my shirt and they made fun of me. At the base I was taken to a small dark room and they made me turn my face to the wall. I could hear soldiers around me making fun and laughing. I was left there for about an hour.

 

At around 7:00 a.m. I was taken to an open air area where they made me sit on a metal stool without a back. Then I was taken to the back of a jeep where I sat on the metal floor before being transferred to another vehicle where I sat on a seat. I was then driven to Ofer prison, near Jerusalem. 

 

At Ofer prison I was examined by a doctor. While waiting a soldier offered me a cigarette and told me it would be good for me and would make me a tougher person if I wanted to throw stones. Then I was strip searched and taken into Section 19. I was relieved to be among other Palestinian prisoners. By this time it was around 2:30 p.m. I had lunch and rested a bit because I was exhausted.

 

Three days later I was taken to Ofer military court. My family did not attend the first hearing because there was confusion about the date and they came the day before. The hearing was adjourned.

 

I had two more military court hearings and on the last occasion, which was on 18 September 2017, I accepted a plea bargain of four-and-a-half months in prison and a fine of NIS 4,500. I also received a 10 month suspended sentence for five years. In the plea bargain I confessed to throwing two stones which missed. I accepted the plea bargain because my lawyer advised me so and because the other detainees in prison told me to accept the first bargain they offer me because if I start to negotiate they would think I was wasting the court’s time and the judge would be upset for turning the offer down.

 

I was released early on 9 October 2017. The soldiers dumped me at the wrong checkpoint while my family was waiting outside Ofer. I took a taxi home and called my brother. I did not receive any family visits as I was released before a permit was issued for my family to visit me.