UNICEF’s update on the treatment of children in military detention

On 13 February 2015, UNICEF released their second update on the conditions for Palestinian children in the Israeli military detention system.¹ This update follows their significant 2013 report which concluded “the ill-treatment of children who come in contact with the military detention system appears to be widespread, systematic and institutionalized throughout the process.”

Two years after its critical report on the treatment of Palestinian children in Israeli military detention, UNICEF’s second update found no significant decrease in reports of alleged human rights violations, and strikingly reports that Israel will not consider changing its unlawful policy and practice of forcibly removing Palestinian children from the West Bank to Israel for the purpose of detention.

Background to the UNICEF second update

On 6 March 2013, UNICEF released a report entitled ‘Children in Israeli Military Detention: Observations and Recommendations’.² It found that children were being mistreated in a ‘widespread, systematic and institutionalised’ way, and that these violations included:

• having their hands tied together painfully using a single hand-tie

• being arrested at night and transferred on the floor of a military vehicle

• being blind-folded

• bring verbally and physically abused

• not having access to a lawyer and not being informed of rights

• ill-treatment amounting to torture, solitary confinement

• premature resort to detention

• inadequate procedural protection – being forced to sign confessions in Hebrew

• being transferred to prison facilities inside Israel

• different legal systems applying to Palestinian and Israeli children living in the same geographical area (discrimination)

There are currently 163 children in Israeli detention for alleged security offences. 14 of these are aged 14-15, two are aged 12-13 and the remainder are aged 16-17. 68 of these children are held in prisons within Israel.³

The fundamental importance of applying international legal standards to protect children

Since releasing their 2013 report, UNICEF has engaged in dialogue with Israeli authorities on children’s rights while in military detention, and on specific actions that can be undertaken to improve the protection of these children. UNICEF makes clear that the application of fundamental legal standards is critical in protecting children, by asserting it:

“[U]ses the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT) and other international legal instruments reflecting international juvenile justice standards as key reference documents. In line with these, UNICEF advocates for the universal principle that all children in contact with law enforcement and justice institutions (whether juvenile justice systems or military systems) have the right to be treated with dignity and respect at all times and to be afforded special protections.”⁴

UNICEF’s findings on developments since their 2013 report

UNICEF lists military legislation changes and reinforcement of standard operating procedures taken by the government of Israel in relation to the 38 recommendations made in its 2013 report. Most recommendations are listed as ‘under discussion’ or having seen ‘partial’ progress. It appears, however, that even where measures have been adopted to apparently resolve significant problems with the military detention system, the harmful experiences of children have remained largely the same.

A leading legal expert on children’s rights matters in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Gerard Horton of Military Court Watch, notably states that ‘the implemented reforms have been largely ineffectual at stemming the violations’.⁵ UNICEF has itself concluded in its update that ‘reports of ill-treatment of children during arrest, transfer, interrogation and detention have not significantly decreased in 2013 and 2014’.

The UNICEF second update cites 208 affidavits gathered from 2013 until September 2014 by the Working Group on Grave Violations Against Children reporting ill-treatment of Palestinian children by Israeli authorities while under military detention. The disturbing results have been tabled by Military Court Watch, and are replicated below:

No action to be taken on the forcible transfer of children

The UNICEF second update reports that the only issue the government of Israel has refused to take any action on whatsoever is on the forcible transfer of children for detention within prison facilities inside Israel. This practice is in express violation of articles 49, 66 and 76 of the Fourth Geneva Convention.⁶ The unlawfulness of this policy has been confirmed by the UK Foreign Office.⁷

Forcible transfer of protected persons also amounts to a grave breach of the Fourth Geneva Convention.⁸ Grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions attracts personal criminal liability for any person involved, and are also war crimes under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.⁹

Family visits

Aside from being extremely frightening for children, being detained inside Israel makes family visits very difficult, if not impossible.¹⁰ Family members of detainees from the West Bank must apply for a permit to enter Israel¹¹, and these applications do not always result in the issuing of a permit.¹² As a consequence, children can serve their entire sentence without a visit from a family member.¹³ Where permits are issued, the necessary journey is long and very difficult, taking between 8 and 14 hours. Crossing into Israel to visit a relative in detention often involves lengthy searches of the person and possessions. ¹⁴ This process is particularly onerous considering that it takes place to enable a visit which only lasts 45 minutes.¹⁵

Lack of material progress on stemming rights violations of Palestinian children

LPHR endorses the conclusion of Gerard Horton at Military Court Watch that reforms since 2013 have been ‘largely ineffectual at stemming the violations’. It must be emphasised that the consequences of these violations are damaging for children, and their traumatising effect can extend long beyond the period of detention.¹⁶

Please see our further blog, published today, which elaborates upon core areas of acute human rights concern highlighted by both UNICEF’s second update and LPHR’s ‘Know Your Rights’ campaign.

Dearbhla Katharine Minogue – LPHR Executive Committee 

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