Israeli Supreme Court suspends administrative detention order against Palestinian hunger striker Mohammed Allan

This evening, Wednesday 19 August 2015, in response to a petition submitted by Adalah and private attorney Jamil el-Khatib, the Israeli Supreme Court issued a decision suspending the administrative detention order against Mohammed Allan, following the rapid deterioration of his medical condition. Allan is currently being held at Barzilai Hospital. He has been on a 65-day hunger strike in protest of his detention without charge or trial since November 2014.

Following the decision, Adalah and Attorney el-Khatib stated: "The Court may have accepted the petition but this occurred after Mohammed Allan’s case became extremely cruel and inhumane, and brought him to the brink of death. The case of Allan proves that the policy of administrative detention has become a punitive and vindictive tool against Palestinians without charge or trial, which has no parallel in any democratic regime.”

Adalah further added: "The Supreme Court should have accepted the petition from the first moment it was submitted, when it was already clear that there was no justification for the continuation of the administrative detention of Mohammed Allan. Instead, the delay in the Supreme Court's decision led to the deterioration of Allan's medical condition, which has resulted in serious and detrimental effects to his health, potentially irreversible."

Adalah Attorneys Sawsan Zaher and Aram Mahameed and private attorney Jamil al-Khatib, filed the petition to the Supreme Court on 17 August 2015 demanding that the General Security Service (GSS or Shabak) and the Military Commander of the occupied West Bank rescind the administrative detention order against Mohammed Allan, and that Allan be released. The petition contended that administrative detention is supposed to be used rarely and as a preventive measure in order to “prevent immediate danger.” However, the Israeli security authorities use it sweepingly as a punitive measure against Palestinians (more than 400 Palestinians are currently held in administrative detention). Adalah contended that, “the detention of Mohammed Allan is a retaliatory measure, as he does not pose any security threat, especially after the deterioration of his health due to two months of hunger strike.”

For further information, please contact Tom Mehager at tom@adalah.org or 052-436-6355.

Case Citation: HCJ 5580/15, Mohammed Allan v. General Security Service, et al. (case pending)