Military Court Watch

Floor transfer

A majority of minors report being transferred on the metal floor of a military vehicle from the place of arrest to an interrogation centre. The number of reports has jumped significantly in 2015 possibly due to the fact that there has also been an increase in night arrests and a fall in the number of summonses being issued. In some cases it appears that minors are transferred on the floor because of an insufficient number of seats in the vehicle for both soldiers and children. Naturally enough, transferring minors on the floor of a military vehicle whilst tied and blindfolded significantly adds to their mental and physical stress and some also report being slapped and kicked.

In February 2013, UNICEF recommended that at all times during transfer, children should be properly seated, not blindfolded and treated with dignity.

Israeli military standard operating procedures and policies relating to the arrest of minors stipulate that: “at all stages of the arrest and transfer process to an interrogation centre, the commander of the force must ensure that the detainee’s dignity is upheld, including: the detainee must be held in reasonable conditions and must not be subjected to physical or verbal violence, or any other inappropriate behavior”. In response to UNICEF’s recommendation, the Military Prosecutor also confirmed that operational procedures are in place to ensure proper seating of children during transfer upon arrest to the police station, unless there are urgent operational requirements.

The evidence indicates that UNICEF’s recommendation for transfer is generally not followed and Israeli military standard operating procedures are frequently ignored.

Additional cases