Israel to probe Shin Bet officer for brutality for first time

Israel’s justice ministry has opened an investigation into a Shin Bet interrogator for brutality for the first time, according to the Jerusalem Post.

Despite having established a unit known as Mivtan 18 years ago, allegedly dedicated to rooting out torture, this marks the first time that an investigation has been opened. Whilst the details of the case have not been revealed, it is reportedly over an incident involving an interrogation officer dating back to 2015.

According to the Public Committee Against Torture in Israel (PCATI), more than 1,100 complaints have been filed alleging misconduct and brutality by Shin Bet interrogators over the last 17 years.

“We hope that this precedent will usher change in the Shin Bet’s interrogations procedures, in line with their legal and moral obligations,” the committee said in a statement. “Personal accountability will encourage interrogators to adhere to legal practices, keeping in mind that even detainees, be them Jews or Palestinians, maintain their rights and dignity.”

While allegations of torture by Shin Bet agents are commonplace, impunity is the norm. Over 6,500 Palestinians, including 300 children, are currently languishing in Israeli prisons, according to official Palestinian figures.

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Earlier this month, the Palestinian Committee of Prisoners and Released Prisoners’ Affairs said that the Israeli army has an ever growing record of beating and severely abusing Palestinian children during their arrest and interrogation.

This followed a report by Military Court Watch in December which found that almost two thirds of Palestinian minors who were arrested in 2017 experienced abuse at the hands of Israeli forces, an increase of four per cent on a UNICEF report of four years ago. Of the 70 children who were interviewed, a sample of the hundreds who were arrested this year, 64 per cent reported enduring slaps, kicks, pinches, blows with various objects, pushes and being forced to sit in painful positions.

The Israeli Supreme Court has also been accused of giving a “green light” to torture. In December, the High Court denied a petition brought by PCATI on behalf of Palestinian prisoner Asad Abu Ghosh, despite the high level and independent legal-medical opinions confirming the physical and mental abuse he experienced at the hands of his interrogators.

The High Court’s decision was described by some as the most important legal development for interrogations and torture in some two decades, leaving many doubtful that subsequent cases would not also be biased in favour of the state.

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