At around 6:00 p.m., on the day before I was arrested, the Israeli military commander for our area phoned me and asked me to hand myself over at an Israeli police station in the morning. He told me he wanted to save my family, especially my mother and younger siblings, the fear of a night raid. He also told me he wouldn’t have to demolish our house if I came to his office myself. 

 

At around 10:30 a.m. the following morning, I went to the police station in Etzion settlement as ordered. I went with my friend who was also summoned and his father and uncle. We arrived at the police station at around 11:00 a.m.

 

I was immediately taken inside and put in an interrogation room. I was not tied or blindfolded. The interrogator phoned a lawyer for me and left the room. The lawyer tried to calm me down; he thought I was terrified. The conversation was very short. Then the interrogator came back told me I had to tell him everything I had to say. He did not inform me of my right to silence. 

 

The interrogator told me he had confessions against me from two other detainees they had arrested earlier. He also told me everything was clear. He told me I was accused of throwing stones and Molotov cocktails, among other things. He was calm and did not yell at me. He offered me coffee and cigarettes. I did not deny the accusations.

 

The interrogator showed me some video footage. I confessed to some accusations but not to all of them. At the end the interrogator he asked me to sign a document written in Hebrew. He did not translate it for me and I signed it without understanding what it said. The interrogation lasted about an hour.

 

After the interrogation I was taken to Ofer prison, near Jerusalem. I was searched with my clothes on before being taken to section 13. Two days later I was taken to a military court. My parents were not there because I told my lawyer to tell them not to come to save them the tiring trip. My detention was extended. In all I had about 15 court hearings. 

 

The last hearing was about five months after the date of my arrest. At that session I was sentenced in a plea bargain to three years in prison. I was also given another year suspended for a period of time which I cannot remember. My family did not have to pay any fines. I accepted the plea bargain based on my lawyer’s advice.

 

I spent my prison time at Ofer prison. My parents visited me 10 times and I was allowed to call home from a telephone provided by the prison authorities twice a month for about 10 minutes.

 

After 7 October 2023 everything was turned upside down. The prison guards punished us by not allowing us to leave the cells for a break. They locked the door and did not allow us to leave. We became 15 boys instead of six, so the cell was very crowded and some of us had to sleep on the floor. They took away our spare clothes and everything else we had like our kettle, shampoo, shavers etc. Food was not enough and family visits were suspended.

 

On the day of my release, I was told I was going to go to see my mother. I was taken to a troop carrier. Then I was taken to the office of an intelligence officer who had a quick talk with me and told me I was not allowed to celebrate my release.  Later a Red Cross car took me and other detainees to Ramallah. I was dropped off in the centre of Ramallah at around 3:00 a.m. on 25 November 2023. My father and my cousin were there waiting for me. We spent the rest of the night at my cousin’s house and went home in the morning. My mother cooked a nice lunch for me; I was hungry because my cousin did not give me enough food. 

 

Since my release I have had nothing to do. I left school before I was arrested and I can barely read or write. I am finding it hard to find a job. I would like to train to become a blacksmith.