700 Palestinian minors were arrested by Israeli army in 2006, Defence for Children International reports

March 14, 2007

Bethlehem - Ma'an - In 2006, Israel continued its policy of arresting and imprisoning Palestinian children, Defence for Children International-Palestine Section (DCI) reported in its 2006 report, issued on 4 March 2007.

Some 700 Palestinian children (minors under 18) were arrested by Israeli soldiers over the course of the year, DCI says in its report.

The introduction to the report continues as follows: "Of these, around 25 children were held on administrative detention orders, imprisonment without charge or trial. The overwhelming majority of those arrested in 2006 were boys; there were eight girl child prisoners who served sentences at different points during the year. Of these, four had been arrested in 2006.

"At any given point during the year, there were between 340 and 420 Palestinian children held in Israeli prisons and detention centers in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT), with around 380 held at the end of the year. Of these, around 300 were being held in central prisons, either pending trial or after having been sentenced. The remaining 80 were being held in interrogation and detention centers. The number of children arrested in 2006 brings the total number of Palestinian children arrested by Israel since the beginning of the second Intifada in September 2000 to approximately 5,200.

"Palestinian child political prisoners routinely face violations of their human rights during the arrest through imprisonment process. They are exposed to physical and psychological abuse, often amounting to torture. They are denied prompt access to an attorney and often denied contact with their families and the outside world. Many are held without charge or trial. They face substandard, often inhumane, conditions of detention, both in the facilities where they are initially held and interrogated and in those where they await trial and serve their sentence. "

Moreover, they are frequently denied access to proper medical care. In many cases, the arrest, interrogation and imprisonment experience has psycho-social effects that extend far beyond the period of detention."

The full report can be downloaded at http://www.dci-pal.org/english/doc/Reports/2007/ChildPrisoners2006.doc