Testimony: I.S.I.E.
Name: | I.S.I.E. |
Age: | 16 |
Date: | 22 February 2023 |
Location: | ****, West Bank |
Accusation: | Throwing stones |
On 22 February 2023, a 16-year-old minor was arrested in his village during clashes with Israeli soldiers at 4:00 p.m. He reports ill-treatment. He reports consulting with a lawyer prior to interrogation but not being informed of his right to silence by the interrogator. He describes prison conditions after 7 October. He was released in a prisoner swap on 25 November 2023.
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Then one of the soldiers tied my hands behind my back with four plastic ties: One on each wrist and two more connecting them in the middle. They were tight and painful; my hands swelled and my wrists hurt for a long time. He also blindfolded me and took me to the back of a jeep and made me sit in the middle on the metal floor. Inside the jeep the soldiers continued to beat me. They also swore at me.
I was taken to the nearby settlement of Beit El. I was left in a shipping container from around 5:00 p.m. until around noon the following day. I was not given anything to eat or drink, but I was allowed to go to the toilet. Then I was taken to the police station in Binyamin settlement. At around 11:30 p.m. I was taken for interrogation.
The interrogator wore civilian clothes. He had a camera in the room. He phoned a lawyer before he started to question me. The lawyer wanted to know what the issue was and then told me to deny the accusation. The conversation was short and the interrogator was listening on speaker phone.
The interrogator did not inform me of my right to silence. He accused me of many things and I denied everything. He told me there were witnesses but did not name them. The accusations included throwing stones and sharp items at settlers. The interrogator threatened to lock me up in prison for 10 years if I did not confess. I was questioned for about an hour-and-a-half. I continued to deny the accusations.
At the end of the interrogation I was shown a document written in Hebrew and the interrogator wanted me to sign it. I asked him to translate it for me but he refused and I refused to sign.
After the interrogation I was taken back to Beit El settlement. At around noon the following day I was taken to the military court at Ofer, near Jerusalem. My parents were not there because no one told them I had a hearing. My detention was extended. After the court I was strip searched before being taken to the minors’ section at Ofer prison.
I had about 14 military court hearings. My last hearing was scheduled for 13 November 2023, but I was released before that date in the prisoners’ exchange deal with Hamas.
After 7 October 2023, the conditions inside prison became terrible. They took away our extra clothes and shoes, and we were only left with the clothes we were wearing. They removed the window panes during very cold weather. The cells were overcrowded; four more detainees were added and our numbers jumped from 6 to 10 in one cell. They only gave us two meals a day. Breakfast was bread and sour cream and lunch was one plate of either rice or wheat. Most nights I went to bed hungry. They closed the Cantina and only allowed us to go out to exercise for 30 minutes a day. We were disconnected from the outside world.
At around 1:00 p.m. on the day when I was released, a prison guard called me aside and told me he was taking me for an interrogation by an intelligence officer. I was thoroughly searched and told to change into grey pajamas. I waited for a long time and then I was taken to the room of the intelligence officer who told me I was going to be released. He told me if I celebrated my release at home he was going to arrest me again. I also met with representatives of the Red Cross.
I was released on 25 November 2023. I arrived home at around 4:30 a.m. I slept for about three hours and then I went to school. I missed school. I want to study hard to get good grades that would qualify me to study engineering at a university.
* Some information in this testimony has been concealed as some minors report being threatened if they speak publicly about their experience in prison following their release as part of the prisoner swap deal post 7 October 2023.