Israel Police brands Palestinian prisoner’s face with Star of David

Israeli police stamped a Star of David on the face of a Palestinian prisoner from Jerusalem’s refugee camp of Shuafat.

Four days after his detention, 22-year-old Orwah Sheikh Ali was released by order of a judge from the Magistrate’s Court in Jerusalem. Released to house arrest, Orwah noticed the shape of the Star of David appear clearly on his face.

He denies all charges that he is a drug dealer, his lawyer said, stressing that the police tortured him and branded his face with the Star of David

Police claim the marks happened when an officer pressed the laced-up part of their boot against the suspect’s face while they subdued him.

Adi Bar Tal, the judge who ordered Orwah’s release, said, “It has emerged that the arrest featured severe violence,” criticising the Palestinian’s detention in a police station over the weekend instead of in a holding facility.

The Times of Israel reported Bar Tal saying that Sheikh Ali had not been allowed to be examined by a physician despite a ruling mandating this being issued on Saturday.

Sheikh Ali said that he was severely tortured by Israel Police during his detention, including by having a plastic bag placed over his head.