Protect the Protest in Palestine & Israel

Dear Friends,

Since the outbreak of the War on 7 October 2023, the Israeli police have initiated an unprecedented number of unlawful arrests and detentions of Palestinian citizens of Israel (PCI). The state's actions, aimed at suppressing their freedom of speech and Palestinian identity, have targeted PCI protesting on the streets or online, primarily in support of Palestinian civilians – facing mass killing, injury, starvation, property destruction and more by the Israeli military - in Gaza.

One of the most serious protest cases that Adalah is dealing with concerns that of A.K. and M.J. On 19 October 2023, the police arrested 11 PCI protestors, including four minors, from the Arab town of Umm Al-Fahem during a demonstration against the Israeli war on Gaza. The police forcefully dispersed the protest, reportedly using rubber bullets and stun grenades. Within the next three days, following legal representation by Adalah and volunteer lawyers, the courts released all the detainees except for two human rights defenders, A.K., who is also a well-known lawyer, and M.J.

On 6 November 2023, the state prosecutor indicted A.K. and M.J. – the organizers of the protest - for "incitement to terrorism" and “identifying with a terrorist organization” under Israel’s 2016 Counter-Terrorism Law, requesting their detention without bond until the conclusion of proceedings. The state initiated these charges solely based on their participation in the protest and the slogans they chanted, which have been commonly used during PCI demonstrations for decades.

On 11 January 2024, the Haifa Magistrate's Court decided to release A.K. to house arrest, acknowledging his positive role as a social activist in his community. "[He had been a] social activist, in the positive sense of the term, in his city, involved in efforts to reduce violence in Arab society, working with youth, and had not been involved in any criminal events”, the Magistrate's Court ruled. However, the Israeli prosecution appealed to the Haifa District Court, which, on 15 January 2024, overturned the lower court’s decision and ruled to detain A.K. until the conclusion of all proceedings. A.K.'s legal team, consisting of Adalah and a private attorney from the Human Rights Defenders Fund, appealed this decision to the Israeli Supreme Court (SCT). The legal team argued int the appeal that the District Court based its decision on irrelevant considerations and erred in ascribing ideological motivations to A.K's actions, as the slogans fall under the freedom of expression, and do not amount to criminal incitement. On 7 February 2024, the SCT overturned the District Court's decision, ordering the release of A.K. after three and a half months of detention.

M.J. was released after eight months in prison. On 16 June 2024, the Haifa District Court rejected the state prosecution's appeal against the Magistrates' Court decision to release him to house arrest with conditions, in Zalafa, an Arab village near his hometown of Umm Al-Fahem. The Magistrate's Court's decision followed a request submitted by Adalah to reconsider its earlier decision to detain M.J until the end of the proceedings. The Magistrate's Court acknowledged the long and harsh conditions of his imprisonment and noted that his time served was close to the expected sentence for such cases, contrary to the prosecution's claims that a harsher sentence would be imposed in this case.

Following their indictment, the Israel Prison Service (IPS) held A.K. and M.J. in Israeli detention facilities under extremely dire conditions. The already poor conditions for thousands of Palestinian prisoners held in security wings of Israeli prisons have deteriorated alarmingly since the start of the war. Palestinian prisoners face severe overcrowding, brutal treatment by guards, denial of family visits, prolonged delays for lawyer visits, and inadequate food and access to hygiene items. A.K. also reported being verbally abused and witnessed other prisoners being physically abused by the guards.

A.K and M.J.’s arrests for protest activities, along with their prolonged detention and criminal indictment under the Counter-Terrorism Law, violate their rights and pose a significant threat to free speech and peaceful assembly for all Palestinians in Israel. The authorities aim to deter all dissent by creating such a chilling effect on speech among the broader Palestinian population in Israel. The state’s policy of requesting detention until the conclusion of legal proceedings is designed to act as a harsh deterrent for any PCI who considers protesting against the War.

Adalah continues to represent A.K. and M.J.

Thank you for your continued support for Adalah’s work at this very critical time.

The Adalah team.

Dear Friends,

Since 7 October 2023, Israel has led a ruthless assault on Gaza, which resulted in the killing of and injure to around 100,000 Palestinians, the forced displacement of 85% of the population and an impending famine, and an unparalleled devastation of houses and infrastructure, leaving residents in extreme peril.

During the past four months, Palestinian citizens of Israel (PCI) have faced a draconian crackdown on their fundamental freedoms of free expression and assembly, with Israeli law enforcement authorities targeting PCI who express dissent against the Israeli military’s massive attack on Gaza. From the beginning, Israeli officials made inciteful statements against Palestinians as a whole, including PCI and representatives of Palestinian political parties and Members of Knesset.

Further, the Israeli Police Commissioner issued an unlawful directive banning demonstrations in support of the Palestinian people in Gaza. The police carried out mass arrests and detentions for social media posts and participation in protests in solidarity with the Palestinian people in Gaza, accusing hundreds of individuals and criminally indicting dozens of “supporting terrorist organizations” or engaging in “incitement to terrorism”. The posts, social media interactions, and other speech largely fall within the scope of freedom of expression. Adalah provided and continues to provide direct legal representation, as well as advice and consultation to private lawyers handling these cases.

On behalf of the Palestinian political leaders and parties in Israel, Adalah challenged this unlawful ban on anti-war protests by submitting three successive petitions to the Israeli Supreme Court in November and December 2023. The petitions were filed on behalf of the Hadash (Jabha) political party and the Israeli Communist Party, as well as MK Mr. Mohammad Barakeh, Chairman of the High Follow-Up Committee for Arab Citizens in Israel.

In the first case, Adalah demanded the cancellation of the ban and the police’s decision not to grant permits for protests in the Palestinian towns of Umm al-Fahem and Sakhnin in Israel. While the Court ruled that the state could not impose a total ban on protests, it accepted the police’s claim that they lacked the manpower to guarantee that the demonstrations would not disturb public order, upholding the police’s racially-based assessments about how a substantial police presence would be required due to concerns about incitement.

The second and third petitions followed several weeks during which the police, in a systematic and unlawful manner, blocked the High Follow-Up Committee from holding small protest vigils that Adalah argued did not require police permits, since they did not involve marches or speeches. Nevertheless, the police blocked the events in advance. In advance of one of the vigils held in Nazareth on 8 November 2023, the police detained six members of the High Follow-Up Committee, including four former Palestinian Knesset members, some of whom were released under restrictive conditions.

The Supreme Court dismissed the second petition without a hearing, ruling that the petitioners had not proven that the protest was not subject to permit requirements. Notably, on 10 December, the Supreme Court affirmed in response to a separate and different petition that no permit was required for a comparable vigil that was held in Tel Aviv.

At a Supreme Court hearing on the third petition, Adalah argued that that the de facto ban on protests by PCI constituted a flagrant contravention of Israeli law. However, Adalah and the High Follow-up Committee decided to withdraw the petition after the state insisted on introducing secret evidence before the Court concerning alleged information about a risk of violence and disruption, over the petitioners’ objections. To date, therefore, in a break from past precedent, the Supreme Court has given the police total discretion to continue to implement a harsh and illegal policy of preventing protests by PCI during wartime that violates their rights in a discriminatory and racist manner.