[News] Israeli soldiers torture 10-year-old in his home

[Anti-Imperialist News]

Israeli soldiers torture 10-year-old in his home
Report, Defence for Children International-Palestine Section, 10 July 2008
http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article9683.shtml

A 10-year-old boy was subjected to physical abuse amounting to 
torture for 2.5 hours by Israeli soldiers who stormed his family's 
shop on 11 June, seeking information on the location of a handgun. 
The boy was repeatedly beaten, slapped and punched in the head and 
stomach, forced to hold a stress position for half and hour, and 
threatened. He was deeply shocked and lost two molar teeth as a 
result of the assault.

On Wednesday 11 June 2008, at around 10:30am, 10-year-old Ezzat, his 
brother Makkawi (7) and sister Lara (8) were in their father's shop 
selling animal feed and eggs in the village of Sanniriya, near the 
West Bank city of Qalqiliya. The children were suddenly startled to 
see two Israeli soldiers storm in to the shop.

Interrogation and abuse in the shop

One soldier wearing a black T-shirt started shouting in a loud, 
menacing voice in Arabic, "your father sent us to you to collect his 
gun." A terrified Ezzat responded, "My father does not own a gun." 
The soldier responded by slapping Ezzat hard across the right cheek 
and his brother Makawi across his face. The soldier then ordered 
Makkawi and Lara to leave the shop. Once the younger children had 
left the soldier demanded once again that Ezzat hand over his 
father's gun. Although Ezzat repeated that his father did not own a 
gun the soldier ordered him to search for it in the sacks containing 
the animal feed. Ezzat kept insisting that there was no gun in the 
shop so the soldier slapped him once again, this time across his left cheek.

One of Ezzat's friends, realizing that something was wrong, tried to 
enter the shop but was kicked by the soldier standing at the door and 
prevented from entering. Soon a group of local people had gathered 
outside the shop. Some of the people in the group also tried to enter 
the shop but were prevented from doing so by the soldier at the door.

The soldier in the black T-shirt asked him once again to produce the 
gun. Ezzat answered, "We do not have anything." The soldier responded 
by punching him hard in the stomach causing Ezzat to fall over onto 
empty egg boxes. Ezzat started screaming and crying out from pain and 
fear. The soldier in the black T-shirt started making fun of Ezzat 
and imitated him crying. Ezzat remained in the shop alone with the 
soldiers for a further 15 minutes when the soldier in black abruptly 
grabbed him by his T-shirt and dragged him out of the shop. Ezzat 
asked the soldier if he could lock up his father's shop but the 
soldier said he wanted it to remain open so that it could be robbed. 
The soldier also threatened to put Ezzat in his jeep and take him away.

Once they were out of the shop, Ezzat was ordered to walk in front of 
the soldiers to his house, whilst a gun was pointed at his back. The 
soldiers hit him several times on the nape along the way. On 
approaching his house Ezzat saw many Israeli military officials 
surrounding the house and a number of green military vehicles parked 
outside. One of the olive-colored jeeps had the word "police" written on it.

Interrogation and abuse in the home

After arriving at the family's home the soldier in the black T-shirt 
stood Ezzat in the yard and ordered him to search the flower basin 
for the gun. Before Ezzat had a chance to respond the soldier slapped 
him so violently that Ezzat fell down face first into the basin. 
Without giving him the chance to stand up the soldier grabbed him by 
his T-shirt and lifted him up roughly. He was then instructed in 
Arabic by another soldier to head to the guest room.

On approaching the guest room Ezzat could see his father standing by 
the door. The soldier slapped him on the neck and Ezzat fell to the 
ground. As Ezzat stood up the soldier slapped him a second time 
making him fall to the ground once again. All this happened in front 
of his father. He then grabbed Ezzat by his T-shirt and lifted him in 
to the air. The soldier told Ezzat's father that he was going to take 
his son to prison. He also threatened to take Ezzat's 19-year-old 
sister to prison. Ezzat was then pushed forcibly in to the guest room 
where his mother and four of his other siblings, including his 
sisters Diana (19), Raghda (18), (Aya) 15 and brother Jihad (3), were 
being held. His mother was crying. Ezzat was also crying and when 
asked by his mother why he was crying, he said it was because he had 
been hit by the soldiers. His mother asked the soldiers to stop 
beating her son and to beat her instead.

After several minutes Ezzat was taken out of the guest room and 
slapped several times by the soldier in black, once so hard that he 
fell to the ground. After being moved to several locations in the 
house Ezzat was told to stay in the boys' bedroom. The same soldier 
then left the room but would return every five minutes to slap Ezzat 
and also to punch him several times in the stomach. Each time this 
took place Ezzat would shout and scream out in pain and burst in to 
tears. The soldier would then imitate him and make fun of him. The 
soldier hit him around six times.

Destruction of property and use of stress positions

A short time later, five soldiers entered the room and proceeded to 
destroy the family's property using hammers. In all, the soldiers 
destroyed wooden ventilation panels in the attic, a small 
refrigerator in the bedroom and it contents, damage to the kitchen, a 
fan and the fireplace.

Ezzat spent one hour in the bedroom alone with the soldiers. In that 
hour he was ordered by the same soldier to stand on one foot for half 
an hour, with his back against the wall and with both his hands 
lifted up in the air. Ezzat was exhausted by this but was too scared 
to put his foot down on the ground. Eventually he was told by one of 
the other soldiers that he could put his foot down. He was then asked 
to sit down in a squat position. He managed to remain in this 
position for two minutes and then had to stand up. A female soldier 
then walked in to the room and asked him to sit on the refrigerator box.

Shortly after the soldier in the black T-shirt returned accompanied 
by Ezzat's older sister Diana. He proceeded to ask Ezzat whether he 
cared for his sister to which Ezzat responded, "Yes I do." The 
soldier then asked him to tell him where the gun was hidden and that 
if he told him where it was hidden that he would not tell Ezzat's 
father. The soldier left the room with Ezzat's sister. He then 
returned to the room on his own and hit Ezzat all over his body. He 
left the room once again and after a while came back offering Ezzat 
10 Shekels in return for telling him where the gun was. Ezzat 
responded that he did not care about money. This made the soldier 
extremely angry and he took off his helmet and started throwing it at 
Ezzat from two meters away. Ezzat was in extreme pain. The soldier 
continued to hit him with the helmet and then left the room once 
again returning to slap him across his face and on his stomach. This 
continued for some time with the soldier leaving the room and 
returning to hit Ezzat and to question him over the gun.

Interrogation of family

Ezzat then witnessed the soldier in the black T-shirt and the female 
soldier leading his sisters and mother to one of the rooms close to 
the boys' bedroom. They closed the door of the room but Ezzat could 
hear the soldiers shouting at them. He overheard the soldier telling 
the female soldier to hit his mother because she was refusing to take 
her clothes off to be searched. After the incident was over Ezzat's 
sister informed him that they were all strip searched by the female 
soldier, while the male soldier waited outside.

Meanwhile, a soldier wearing black sunglasses entered the bedroom in 
which Ezzat was being held. He walked in pointing a rifle, a few 
centimeters away from Ezzat's head. Ezzat was so terrified that he 
began to shiver. The soldier laughed and made fun of him. He asked 
Ezzat to tell him where the gun was and threatened to shoot him if he 
didn't. Ezzat continued to maintain that there was no weapon hidden 
away. The soldier, getting agitated shouted at Ezzat, "for the last 
time, tell me where the gun is before I shoot you." Ezzat repeated 
that he did not have a gun. Hearing this, the soldier lowered his 
rifle and left the room. After about five minutes the soldier in the 
black T-shirt entered the room along with four other soldiers and 
said that they were leaving but would return.

The soldiers spent two and one half hours in the house in total. 
After the incident Ezzat spent the night at his uncle's house because 
he was too scared to sleep in his home. As a result of the physical 
assault Ezzat lost two of his molar teeth and is deeply shocked by 
the incident.

DCI/PS statement

DCI/PS is appalled that Israeli authorities would subject a 
10-year-old child to beatings, position abuse and threats over the 
course of several hours. The treatment of Ezzat falls within the 
definition of torture and other acts of cruel, inhuman or degrading 
treatment or punishment as defined in the UN Convention Against 
Torture, to which Israel is a State Party. The treatment of Ezzat 
also infringes numerous other international conventions to which 
Israel is bound, as well as Israeli military and domestic law.

DCI/PS again calls on Israel to immediately ensure its compliance 
with the UN Convention Against Torture and to thoroughly and 
impartially investigate the allegations of torture and abuse of Ezzat 
and bring those found responsible for such abuse to justice.

DCI/PS also calls on the EU to make the upgrade of EU-Israel 
bilateral relations conditional upon measurable and confirmed 
progress by Israel to uphold the EU human rights standards in the 
Occupied Palestinian Territory.


Related Links
    * <http://www.dci-pal.org/>Defence for Children 
International-Palestine Section




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