Nazareth District Court Rejects Adalah's Appeal and Refuses to Grant Furlough to Political Prisoner
On 30 October 2002, the Nazareth District Court denied a prisoner's appeal filed by Adalah on behalf of Mr. Mohammed Zayed, who is currently incarcerated at Shata Prison. Adalah Staff Attorney Abeer Baker filed the appeal on 25 October 2002, seeking permission for Mr. Zayed, a Palestinian citizen of Israel, to be granted a furlough in order to attend his daughter's wedding.
In 1987, Mr. Zayed was convicted by the Lod Military Court for security offenses, and is currently serving an indeterminate life sentence. Mr. Zayed is classified by the Prisons Authority as a "security prisoner," and as such, is confined under conditions that are different and harsher than other prisoners. He is only allowed to visit with his family separated from them by a metal grille, and has never had any physical contact with his youngest daughter, who was two months old at the time of his incarceration. He is not allowed to use a telephone.
Prior to filing the appeal, Adalah and Mr. Zayed made numerous attempts to contact the Prisons Authority, the Minister of Internal Security and the warden of Shata prison, by telephone and mail, and received no response. Last year, Mr. Zayed's request for a furlough to attend his son's wedding was also denied by the Prisons Authority. This decision was upheld on appeal by both the District Court and the Supreme Court.
During the hearing on 30 October, the Attorney General's representative rejected Adalah's request that Mr. Zayed be granted a furlough, and refused to consider other alternatives, such as a special visit by the bride and groom to the prison. The Attorney General's representative based her arguments on secret evidence, namely information provided by the General Security Service (GSS) and the Prisons Authority which argued that Mr. Zayed is a very dangerous prisoner who exhibits bad behavior.
Adalah stressed that Mr. Zayed's record showed no disciplinary infractions during the past year. Given the strictness with which disciplinary practices are recorded at the prison, Adalah argued, this fact contradicts the information provided by the GSS and Prisons Authority that Mr. Zayed is dangerous and poorly behaved. Adalah further argued that the Court should consider the humanitarian aspects of the appeal, and the harsh conditions of Mr. Zayed's detention.
In his ruling, Judge Yitzchak Cohen agreed with the assessment of Mr. Zayed presented in the secret evidence. He noted that while it is duty of the Court to defend the rights of prisoners, allowing Mr. Zayed to attend his daughter's wedding would present too great a security risk.
