After eight months in an Israeli prison, Haifa District Court orders anti-War Palestinian protester from Umm al-Fahem to house arrest
On 16 June 2024, the Haifa District Court ordered Mr. Muhammad Jabareen, a Palestinian citizen of Israel (PCI) and a resident of Umm al-Fahem, to house arrest with stringent conditions after he spent over eight months in detention in an Israeli prison. Jabareen’s prolonged imprisonment followed an indictment filed by the state charging him with “incitement to terrorism” and “identification with a terrorist organization” under Israel's 2016 Counter-Terror Law. The District Court upheld the Haifa Magistrate's Court's decision, rejecting the state's appeal against his transfer to house arrest.
Israeli prosecutors charged Jabareen, along with Attorney Ahmed Khalefa, for allegedly leading chants supporting terrorism during a protest against the war on Gaza in Umm al-Fahem on 19 October 2023.
CLICK HERE to read more about the case of Jabareen and Khalefa and the accusations against them
In January 2024, the Haifa Magistrate’s Court approved the state’s request to detain Jabareen until the conclusion of legal proceedings. On 6 May 2024, Adalah attorneys Myssana Morany, Hadeel Abo Saleh and Dr. Hassan Jabareen, filed a motion to reconsider this decision, highlighting his prolonged detention, and the delays in the trial’s progress, due to the state's insistence on conducting hearings via video conferencing, outside of Jabareen’s physical presence in court, which Adalah objected to. Adalah further underscored Jabareen’s harsh and inhumane conditions in the detention facility; Jabareen has lost a significant amount of weight since his arrest and reported being subjected to humiliating and violent practices by the prison guards.
After two hearings before the Haifa Magistrates Court, on 13 June 2024, the court concluded that Jabareen's detention of over eight months might have already exceeded the expected sentence if he were to be convicted. The court ordered Jabareen to be placed under electronic monitoring, he is prohibited from returning to his hometown of Umm al-Fahem and he will be under continuous supervision by court-approved officers. Additionally, the court imposed stringent bail and security deposit requirements, along with a prohibition on internet usage.
Israel’s State Attorney’s Office appealed against Jabareen's release from prison to the Haifa District Court, arguing as to the severity of the charges and characterizing his case as “severe and extreme”. They also pointed to the volatile security situation in the country, asserting that it heightens Jabareen's perceived danger and justifies his continued detention. Adalah countered that charges related to expression do not justify detention, and even more so in Jabareen's case considering his individual circumstances. Adalah further argued, as adopted by the court, that this approach neglects to properly assess Jabareen's individual circumstances and insists that the broader security context should not influence decisions regarding his detention.
The Haifa District Court in rejecting the state’s appeal expressed concern that delays in the main criminal case could result in Jabareen being detained for up to eleven months before the even trial begins, emphasizing his presumption of innocence.
Jabareen’s case illustrates a broader discriminatory policy of prolonged detention for Palestinian citizens of Israel and residents of East Jerusalem (EJ) for alleged speech offenses. According to figures released by the Israeli police on 1 May 2024, since 7 October 2023, over 160 indictments have been filed, almost exclusively against PCI and Palestinian residents of EJ. The state attorney’s office's official policy, in effect since October 7, is to seek detention until the end of legal proceedings in all cases involving charges of incitement to terrorism. A state attorney’s office official recently revealed in the Israeli media that due to the state’s “zero tolerance approach”, approximately 80% of these cases have resulted in detention until the conclusion of proceedings.
Adalah commented:
"Since the beginning of the war, Israeli authorities have deliberately and systematically abused the criminal process to punish and politically suppress Palestinians. Israel arbitrarily and unjustly detains scores of Palestinian citizens of Israel and residents of East Jerusalem for prolonged periods in pre-trial detention, solely on charges related to expression offenses. The state attorney’s policy of holding them in pre-trial detention for months without bail, and subjecting them to inhumane conditions in security wings of prisons flagrantly violates their rights. These practices collectively constitute severe infringements on freedom of expression, underscoring Israel’s racist law enforcement policies."
