Update on the Arrest of Human Rights defender and activist Mohammad Othman by Addameer and Stop the Wall Campaign
[Ramallah, 20 October 2009] On Monday 19 October 2009, a court hearing at Salem military court, in the Northern West Bank, extended Mohammad Othman’s detention period for another 11 days. It has been 29 days now since human rights defender, Mohammad Othman was arrested at the Allenby Bridge Border Crossing between Jordan and the West Bank. Mohammad, who volunteers with the “Grassroots Stop the Wall Campaign”, was on his way back to Ramallah from an advocacy tour in Norway, during which he was engaged in a number of speaking events and meetings with government officials. Monday’s court hearing was Mohammad’s third since the moment of his arrest on 22 September 2009. The two previous hearings have consistently extended Mohammad’s detention period for 10 and 12 days respectively, although no clear allegations have been made against Mohammad and no external evidence was brought to the attention of the court. Arrests of individuals based on reasonable suspicions are admissible in the beginning of one’s detention. However, after one month of continuous interrogation, such suspicions need to be substantiated and built upon by external evidence if any fair trial standards are to be upheld. Based on Israeli military orders, a military judge can authorize the detention of Palestinian detainees for up to 90 days, which can be extended for another 90 days by the judge of the Military Appeal Court.
During the hearing, the Israeli interrogation police failed once again to provide any evidence justifying Mohammad’s arrest, but contended that an extension of his detention period was necessary for further interrogation. The military judge rejected the interrogators’ initial request to extend Mohammad’s detention period to 23 additional days, arguing that the period was too long, but agreed to a 10 day extension period, based on “secret information”, which was made available to him by representatives from the Israeli Security Agency (ISA). Military Judge Eliahu Nimni argued that the extension is required in order to end the interrogation and clarify suspicions against Mohammad. At the same time, he maintained that releasing Mohammad would constitute a security threat, despite the fact that no concrete suspicions of any alleged offences were made, thus siding with the interrogation police. Addameer appealed the court’s decision and the appeal hearing has been scheduled for Thursday, 22 October.
Posted by psnedmonton 
