Middle East Monitor / January 30, 2021
On Thursday at dawn, Israeli police stormed the occupied Jerusalem neighbourhood of Isawiya and raided a Palestinian home, arresting a 13-year-old boy and his 18-year-old brother.
Speaking to Israeli newspaper Haaretz, the 13-year-old boy said that the Israeli police tasered him with an electric gun and beat him harshly when they arrested him and during the interrogation, which was carried out in the absence of his parents.
The boy indicated that the Israeli police raided the house at around 3 am and arrested him and his brother. The newspaper referred to the boy as “M”, revealing that Israeli police held him for 12 hours before he was released to house arrest for five days.
M said he was tortured, beaten, and insulted by Israeli police over a long period of time. Israeli police denied this, claiming his detention was legal.
“They threw me on the ground along with my brother,” M communicated. “They beat us, handcuffed us, and took us before putting on my shoes. I held my shoes with my hands. I asked the police if I could put on my shoes, but they slapped me and blindfolded me.”
M recounted that he remained for three hours with his hands tied behind his back while sitting on his knees. When he became tired and fell on the ground, a policeman kicked him and he was then taken for questioning.
According to Haaretz, the boy conveyed that four interrogators questioned him and accused him of throwing stones. They told him that they did not allow his father to be present during the interrogation in order for it not to be interrupted.
The interrogators told him that they had a video of him throwing stones. He was released 12 hours later, but his brother remains in prison.
Haaretz reported his father explaining: “We were asleep when we heard a sound of a strong explosion. I looked around and found five to six policemen beating my sons and stunning them. One of the policemen stunned me in my head and caused a wound. Then, he beat me on my teeth.”
The father added: “My brother came from a neighbouring house to see what was going on. They put him on the ground and stunned him.”
He continued: “One of the policemen told me that he came to our house to take revenge on me and my sons. He uttered vulgar words to insult me. His insults were more bitter than shooting me. He grabbed my neck and repeated the insults.”
Describing his youngest son when he was arrested, he said: “I was looking at my son while he was trembling from the electric shocks. He was attempting to get closer to me, but they did not allow him. Even the border police did not understand why they beat us.”
