UN rights office welcomes Israel's release of Palestinian prisoner, urges end to administrative detentions

14 July 2015 - The United Nations human rights office today welcomed the recent release of a Palestinian prisoner who had been on a hunger strike protesting his continuing administrative detention by the Israeli authorities since 8 July 2014.

“We reiterate our call, last made in April, on Israel to end its practice of administrative detention and to either release without delay or to promptly charge all administrative detainees, affording them all the due process guarantees required by international human rights law and standards,” said Rupert Colville, spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), during a press briefing in Geneva.

The prisoner, Khader Adnan, had been on hunger strike for over two months.

At the end of March of this year, 396 Palestinians, including one woman, were reportedly held in administrative detention in Israel. Administrative detainees are held without charge or trial, often on the basis of secret evidence, for periods of up to six months, which are extendable indefinitely.

“The Secretary-General, the UN Human Rights Office and the Human Rights Committee have called for this practice to end,” said Mr. Colville.

Last June, he continued, the Israeli cabinet approved a bill that would permit the 'force-feeding' of Palestinian hunger-striking prisoners. While the bill is now advancing towards final approval by the Knesset, both the High Commissioner and a group of UN Special Procedures, or human rights experts, expressed concerns that the implementation of such a law could breach international human rights standards, concerns the Spokesperson reiterated today.

“We are also seriously concerned at the situation of another Palestinian hunger striker, this time being detained by the Palestinian authorities,” he stated.

Islam Hasan Jameel Hamed has been protesting since 11 April 2015 at his continued detention by the Palestinian General Intelligence Services despite a Palestinian court ruling that he has served his sentence – originally imposed in 2011 – and should be immediately released.

“Hamed is in his fourth month without food and his condition is now very serious. We urge the Palestinian authorities to respect the court ruling and release Islam Hamed,” said Mr. Colville.