Israel: Death of Detainee

Case ISR 240597

The International Secretariat of OMCT requests your URGENT
intervention in the following situation in Israel. 

Brief description of the situation :

Information from reliable source has raised grave concern over the
death on 21 May Khalid Ali Abu Daiyya, in police custody in Sharei
Zedek hospital.  Mr. Abu Daiyya, a Jerusalem resident, 37 years old
and married with five children, was arrested on 16 May in Jerusalem
and detained in the Russian Compound jail and interrogation center in
West Jerusalem.

Police sources claim that Mr. Abu Daiyya tried to commit suicide at
the Russian Compound jail, and was transferred to Givat Sha'ul
Psychiatric Hospital.  The police do not state on what day he was
transferred to the hospital.  It is clear that Mr. Abu Daiyya had been
under interrogation up to his transfer. Once at the hospital Mr. Abu
Daiyya complained of throat pains and asked to be taken to the doctor.
 At that time a police officer came to escort him to Sharei Zedek
hospital.  Police claim that Mr. Abu Daiyya "tore off" his handcuffs
and attacked the police officer.  The police then claim that after Mr.
Abu Daiyya was subdued, he was re-handcuffed, left in a hospital room
and somehow died several hours later. Hospital sources state that Mr.
Abu Daiyya was dead at the time of the scuffle, and resuscitation
techniques failed. 

OMCT is gravely concerned over the circumstances of the death of  Mr.
Abu Daiyya. There are concerns over the account of the events given by
the police, and their account would appear to contradict that of the
hospital. 

There are further concerns over the account given by the authorities
over  alleged attempted suicide of Mr Abu Daiyya given by the police
while under interrogation at the Russian Compound. There would further
appear to be concerns over reasons and timing of the transfer to the
psychiatric hospital, how the scuffle began after Abu Daiyya allegedly
removed his handcuffs, and the time of his death. 

The autopsy, conducted by Dr Jalil Jabri, the Director General of the
Autopsy Department of the Palestinian Authority confirmed that the
body was subjected to severe beating, resulting in fractures in
various parts of the body including the bones in the right hand side
of the face, on an area spanning 15 - 20 cms. The evidence appears to
suggest that Mr. Abu Daiyya  was beaten to death with heavy
instruments.

OMCT is gravely concerned over the death of  Mr. Abu Daiyya . The UN
Committee against Torture recently called Israel to a special session
to explain recent decisions of Israeli courts that appear to allow for
the use of Torture during interrogation. During the session of May 9
1997 , the Committee concluded  that "the methods of interrogation
described by non-governmental organisations on the basis of accounts
given to them by interrogatees which appear to be applied
systematically were neither confirmed nor denied by Israel. The
Committee therefore, must assume them to be accurate"

Copies of the conclusions of  the special session of the UN Committee
against Torture are available from the International Secretariat.

Action requested:
Please contact the concerned Israel authorities urging them to:

i       take immediate measures to guarantee the physical and psychological
integrity of all those detained in Israeli detention facilities;

ii      bring an immediate end to the use of torture and the judicial
sanction of its use in Israel;


iii     guarantee an impartial and exhaustive enquiry into these facts,
identify those responsible, bring them before a civil competent and
impartial tribunal and apply the penal, civil and/or administrative
sanctions provided by law;

iv      take all necessary measures to conform with their obligations
established by the Convention Against Torture.  

Addresses :

Mr. Benjamin Netanyahu, Office of the Prime Minister, 3 Kaplan Street,
Jerusalem 91919, State of Israel. Telex : 25279 mpres il. Fax : + 972
369 17 915

Minister of Justice, Ministry of Justice, 29 Salah al-Din Street,
Jerusalem 91029, State of Israel.  Fax : + 972 2 62 85 438

Mr. Yitzhak Mordachai, Minister of Defense, Ministry of Defense 3
Kline Street, Jerusalem, State of Israel.  Fax : 03 691 69 40 or 03
697 72 85.

Minister of Police, Ministry of Police, PO Box 18182, 3 Sheikh Jarrah,
Kiryat Hamemshala, Jerusalem 91181, State of Israel. Fax : + 972 2
5826 769

Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code number of
this appeal in your reply

Geneva 25 May 1997

Ben Schonveld 
Projects Manager
OMCT-SOS-Torture
Fax 4122 733 1051
Ph  4122 733 3140
OMCT is: l'Organisation Mondiale contre la Torture
         The World Organisation Against Torture

The Human Rights Action Network, a part of Derechos Human Rights, distributes appeals on behalf of victims of human rights violations. You are invited to join the network. Please check the date of the present action and do not write if it's over a month old.