Testimony: D.Y.A.A.
| Name: | D.Y.A.A. |
| Age: | 16 |
| Date of incident: | 11 February 2016 |
| Location: | Beit 'Ur at Tahta, Best Bank |
| Accusation: | None |
On 11 February 2016, a 16-year-old minor from Beit 'Ur at Tahta was arrested by Israeli soldiers from home at 4:00 a.m. He reports ill treatment. He reports that he was not questioned or accused of any offence. Without any explanation, he reports being released without charge 5 hours after he was detained.
At around 4:00 a.m. I heard very loud banging at our front door followed by the sound of the door being broken. As I got out of bed to see what was going on Israeli soldiers entered our home and started to beat me in front of my parents and siblings. There was no explanation for this behavior.The soldiers told me I was under arrest but they did not say why or where they were going to take me. They did not give my parents any documents. They took me outside and when we got to the main road they tied my hands to the front with one plastic tie which was very tight and caused me pain. They beat me while they tied my hands. They also blindfolded me.
I was then pushed into the back of a military jeep where I was forced to sit on the metal floor. The jeep drove away and I was beaten a lot. The jeep stopped near a military watchtower at the entrance to our village. They took me out of the jeep and made me wait.
About 30 minutes later a doctor came and started to ask me some questions about my health condition. He wanted to know whether I took drugs or suffered from any illnesses. I was then driven to Al Mascobiyeh interrogation centre, in West Jerusalem.
We arrived at Al Mascobiyeh around 7:00 a.m. I was searched and beaten again. I was locked up in a room which had a bed. They removed the tie and the blindfold and I was able to sleep for a short while. At around 8:15 a.m. soldiers shackled and handcuffed me and put me in the back of a troop carrier where I sat on a seat. The troop carrier drove for about an hour before stopping at the police station in Binyamin settlement.
I remained inside the vehicle outside Binyamin settlement for about an hour. Then suddenly the soldiers threw me out of the vehicle and told me I was released. It was around 10:15 a.m. They beat me and told me next time they were going to detain me forever. While I was waiting on the side of the road some settlers tried to attack me but the soldiers prevented them from harming me. I managed to stop a Palestinian car which took me to Ramallah and I took another taxi home.
I was never questioned and I still don’t know the reason for my arrest and why I was released shortly afterwards.
