Over 400 Palestinian children detained in Israeli jails: Palestinian Prisoners Club
Xinhua, April 5, 2016 Adjust font size:
The Palestinian Prisoners Club (PPC) announced Monday that Israel holds in custody over 400 Palestinian children and minors in its jails.
These children in Israeli custody are between 12 and 17 years old, including 16 girls, the youngest of who is Dima Al-Wawi, 12, from the southern West Bank city of Hebron, the PPC said in an emailed press statement.
The statement pointed that some of those children are serving a sentence and some are apprehended, while others are under administrative detention. They are divided in two main Israeli prisons in Ofer and Megiddo.
The Club said that since October there has been a significant rise in children arrests due to the new Israeli "discriminatory" laws and draft bills, calling on relevant international organizations, UNICEF in particular, to exert more efforts to protect Palestinian children.
According to specialized rights group Addameer Organization, over 8,000 Palestinian children have been detained by Israel since 2000.
The organization said the most common charge levied against children is stones hurling, which is punishable under Israeli law by imprisonment up to 20 years, and they do not get proper procedures, such as the presence of an attorney or a family member during interrogation. Endit