Press Release - March 01, 1999
On 28 February, 1999 during a visit by Addameer organization to Beersabah prison, lawyer Sahar Francis reported that the rooms of prisoners were subjected to arbitrary searches. At 8am, a large number of police entered the rooms of the prisoners Mukhlas Barghal and Mohammed Dukhan without notification. The prisoner Sultan Al-Juli was handcuffed while he slept and dragged outside his room. All the prisoners in the room were handcuffed and the room was thoroughly searched. Everything in the room was broken and all the belongings were taken out of the room into the corridor. Then, the whole division was searched room by room. The prisoners were ordered to take off their clothes for a body search which they refused. A lot of material was confiscated and the prisoners were unable to record their missing belongings because they were not permitted in the room during the search.

 

The prison administration placed Mukhlas Barghal, Hafez Cundus, Mohammed Dukhan and Sultan Al Juli in solitary confinement. The four of them were also prevented from family visits for an unspecified period of time. The prisoners of Beersabah on Sunday 28 February, declared a one-day hunger strike in support of the four prisoners.

 

Sahar Francis visited the area of solitary confinement where she met the detainees Mohammed Taq’ta and Mahmoud At-toon who have been in solitary confinement for 2-years. In that division, there are 10 prisoners, they are Ali Muslamani, Saleh Lehreimi, Abdul Hadi Ghneim, Majid Abu Qitesh, Walid Aq’il, Ibrahim Sl’esh, Abaas Shabani, Abdul Nasser Issa, Mohammed Taq’ta and Mahmoud At-toon. Addameer has complained to the prison administrator about the length of confinement of these prisoners. If no positive response is received from the administrator, Addameer will take the case to the Israeli High Court of Justice in order to obtain the release of those who have spent more than eight months in confinement.

 

The families of the prisoners are subjected to a thorough search during prison visits. For this reason, the prisoners refused to take 3 meals last Wednesday as a protest against these measures.