Israeli soldiers raided our house at around 2:30 a.m. I was asleep when I heard loud banging at our front door. I was home with my mother who was terrified. The soldiers broke open our door and walked in before we could decide whether to open the door or not.

 

One soldier asked me for my identity card, then told me I was under arrest. He immediately tied my hands behind my back with one plastic tie which he tightened hard. I was in pain. Then he blindfolded me and took me outside without giving my mother any documents or telling us why they were arresting me. 

 

I was taken to the back of a military jeep which was waiting outside. The soldiers made me sit on the metal floor of the jeep between their legs. They did not beat me or verbally abuse me. I was taken to the nearby settlement of Dotan. I was taken to a room where I sat on a chair for about two hours. Then I was taken to Al Jalama interrogation centre, inside Israel, where I spent 38 days in solitary confinement.

 

The cell was very small without windows. I did not see daylight and did not know day from night. I was confused about the time. They left a light on for 24 hours which made it hard for me to sleep. I tried to cover the light with tissue paper to try to sleep but it did not work. I tried to keep my morale high because I knew they wanted to crush my spirit. It was hard. Later that day I was taken for interrogation.

 

The interrogator was not in uniform, I think he was an intelligence officer. Before questioning me he called a lawyer and I spoke to him. The lawyer asked me for my details and told me he was going to represent me. We spoke on speaker phone and the interrogator was listing. The call lasted for less than a minute.

 

Then the interrogator showed me a document written in both Arabic and Hebrew about my rights. It included a line on my right to remain silent during the interrogation. Then I was questioned about allegations which I prefer not to talk about. The interrogation was harsh and the interrogator wanted me to confess but I did not. I was not asked to sign any documents. After the interrogation I was taken back to solitary confinement.

 

During the 38 days I was interrogated more than 30 times. I only spoke to a lawyer once and was informed of my rights only once. The interrogator wanted to exhaust me. I prefer not to talk about the techniques he used, I don’t want to be reminded of the whole experience. At the last interrogation I was asked to sign a document written in Hebrew but I refused to sign.

 

My first military court hearing was 10 days following my arrest. My mother did not attend because she was not informed and my detention was extended. I had about 25 hearings. At the last one, which was on 28 September 2023, I was sentenced in a plea bargain to six months in prison and fined NIS 1,000. I was not given a suspended sentence. My lawyer advised me to accept the plea bargain and I did. 

 

After the 38 days I was taken to Megiddo prison, also in Israel, where I spent the rest of my sentence. At Megiddo I was strip searched and then I was taken into the minors’ section. I was supposed to be released in January 2024, but I was released on 26 November in the Hamas prisoners deal. On the day when I was released the prison guards lied to me and told me I was going to be taken for interrogation. My family met me in Ramallah and I went home with them. I arrived home at around 1:00 a.m.

 

After 7 October 2023, prison conditions became difficult. The guards conducted harsh searches, took away everything we had and sometimes beat and insulted us. 

 

Now that I am free, I want to focus on my school work because I want to get good grades in order to go to the American University in Jenin.