Press Release

Adalah, the Yaffa Youth Movement and the Saraya Theatre Hold a Political Seminar to Mark the Release of Adalah's Report "The Accused – Part II" on the Closure of Investigations into the Killings of 13 Arab Citizens of Israel by the Israeli Police in October 2000

On 18 October 2011 Adalah, the Yaffa Youth Movement and the Saraya Theatre held a political seminar to mark the 11th anniversary of the October 2000 killings and the release of Adalah's new report "The Accused – Part II." Dozens of Arab residents of Yaffa (Jaffa) and a number of Jewish activists attended the seminar, which was held at the Saraya Theatre.

Dr. Amal Jamal opened the seminar by speaking about the perception that has developed among Jewish citizens of Israel that the existence of the Jewish people is directly linked to the existence of the Israeli state as a Jewish state. In this case, the rights of Arab citizens are formulated in accordance with the definition of the state as a Jewish state. Thus the state attempts to define itself as Jewish by limiting the rights of Arab citizens, who are viewed as "the Other" in this equation.

Mr. Sami Abu Shehadeh then spoke about events in Yaffa in October 2000. He emphasized that these events were not just confined to police repression and brutality towards the Arab citizens who went out onto the streets to voice their anger at the inflammatory visit by former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon to the Temple Mount in East Jerusalem and in solidarity with Palestinians living under occupation. The events also included a series of organized attacks by Jewish extremists during which dozens of homes and other property belonging to Arab citizens were attacked, burned and destroyed. The Hassan Bek Mosque would have been destroyed had the Arab residents of Yaffa not defended it. These vicious attacks were also accompanied by an aggressive campaign of incitement in the media against Arab citizens; this campaign caused significant economic harm to the people of Yaffa.

Attorney Smadar Ben Natan, one of the authors of "The Accused – Part II," reviewed the main conclusions of the report, which clearly show the negligence and shortcomings of the Police Investigations Department (Mahash) and other investigating authorities in Israel in investigating the killings of 13 Arab citizens of Israel in October 2000. As a result of these shortcomings, large amounts of evidence that could have led to the identification, prosecution and punishment of the perpetrators were lost. Attorney Ben Natan also stated that it was the premeditated intent of Mahash and the Attorney General to close the investigations into police officers, and that there was no intention of indicting any police officer. Instead, any evidence, however trivial, was used for the purpose of exonerating police officers, despite overwhelming evidence of their guilt in some cases.

Attorney Hassan Jabareen, the General Director of Adalah, then closed the seminar, stating that the Attorney General's decision to close the October 2000 investigations was deliberate, and not just a shortcoming. Attorney Jabareen then drew connections between the closing of the October 2000 investigation files and the closing of investigation files in cases of suspected war crimes during various Israeli military operations in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. He contended that in both cases the decisions to close the cases was based on the same legal basis, according to which Palestinians are viewed as enemies and those who open fire at them and kill them are not held accountable.