Israeli security accused of torturing Palestinian prisoners

Israel’s Shin Bet security service tortures Palestinian prisoners during interrogations, defying a court ban on the practices, two Israeli human rights groups have claimed.

Interrogators beat suspects, shackle them in painful, contorted positions and deprive them of sleep for long periods, according to the 96-page report, Absolutely Forbidden, published by B’Tselem and The Centre for the Defence of the Individual.

Israel’s Justice Ministry insisted interrogations were carried out within the law and described the report as badly flawed.

Israel’s Supreme Court outlawed in 1999 what Shin Bet called “moderate physical pressure”, such as sleep deprivation, exposure to extreme temperatures and tying up detainees in painful positions.

The new report, released yesterday, was based on affidavits from 73 Palestinians detained between July 2005 and January 2006. Most of the testimony was taken by a lawyer acting for the rights groups, who visited detainees in their cells, the report said, adding that in five cases recently released prisoners were visited in their homes.

A complainant identified only as AZ, 29, said his captors made him arch his back over a bench with his hands and legs joined in what prisoners commonly call “the banana position”.

“They brought a chain and used it to hook together the handcuffs and leg shackles. The way this made my body stretch was unbearable,” he said.

“Then the interrogators lifted the bench from both ends and dropped it suddenly. At that point I lost consciousness.”

Despite the judicial ban, prisoners said they were physically abused and subjected to humiliation, swearing and threats by the interrogators, and routinely held in appalling conditions, including isolation and sleep deprivation, the report said.

“Their purpose is to break the interrogees’ spirit and as such, they contradict the Supreme Court ruling and constitute prohibited ill-treatment under international law,” the report said.

B’Tselem research director Yehezkel Lein, the report’s author, said it did not claim to provide a representative sample, but the testimonies provided a snapshot of the treatment regularly meted out to Palestinian detainees.

“We are convinced that they represent a valid indication of the frequency of the phenomena,” he said.

No criminal investigations had been opened against Shin Bet interrogators, even though 500 complaints had been filed since 2001, he added.

The Justice Ministry, which received a copy of the report, said in response that Shin Bet interrogations were “performed in accordance with the law”. The report was “fraught with mistakes, groundless claims and inaccuracies”, it added.

The ministry said Shin Bet interrogations were part of Israel’s “day-by-day fight against terrorists” and that many civilian lives had been saved as a result of information gained.

Hundreds of Israelis have died in suicide bombings, shootings and other Palestinian attacks since the outbreak of the Palestinian uprising in October 2000.

Israeli defence officials say the death toll would be many times higher, if the vast majority of attempts had not been thwarted, often due to Shin Bet warnings.

Lein acknowledged the security concern but said it was not a defence under international law and that those involved could be liable to arrest and prosecution if they visited other countries.