Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar warned the political echelon at the last cabinet meeting last week and in other forums that the severe prison crisis in which the IPS finds itself due to the high overcrowding and lack of space in the prisons, with an emphasis on prisons for security prisoners, harms the scope of arrests carried out by the IDF and the Shin Bet, in the shadow of the wave of terrorist attacks and security tension in Judea and Samaria, Israel Hayom has learned.
Senior defense officials are also warning that National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir's law – which stipulates that in a few days, starting on 1 September, the administrative release of security prisoners with relatively "minor" offenses, imprisoned for up to three years – will make overcrowding more difficult and in fact harms the possibility of arresting "heavier" wanted persons.
Members of the Commission of Inquiry into the Escape of Security Prisoners from Gilboa Prison on a Tour of Israeli Prisons | Photo: Yaniv Zohar
Administrative release is a mechanism established by law in a temporary order, which allows the release of prisoners with relatively light sentences towards the end of their sentence in order to make room in prisons, including for prisoners convicted of more serious crimes. This is in light of the enormous burden on the prisons, and in an attempt to comply with the High Court of Justice ruling that set the basic conditions for possible overcrowding in the prisons in order to protect the prisoners' rights, something that the state has not met for a long time.
Within two years: Surge in the number of administrative detention orders. Security prisoners at Ofer Prison (archive), photo: Moshe Shai
Emergency solution
In the last week of the Knesset's summer recess, while dealing with a law to reduce the cause of reasonableness, Minister Ben-Gvir managed to pass a law that completely abolishes the administrative release mechanism for security prisoners.
Previously, these prisoners could be released through the Administrative Release Mechanism towards the end of their sentence – but only those whose term of imprisonment is between one and three years, and only a few weeks before they finish serving their sentence. These are prisoners imprisoned for security and terrorist offenses such as stone throwing, rioting, minor weapons offenses and more, and not for terrorism or security offenses with "blood on their hands."
All the security and professional bodies do not like the administrative release mechanism, and in the previous Knesset it also included restrictions regarding security prisoners as well as prisoners who committed sexual offenses and domestic violence.
However, given such a severe prison crisis, the mechanism is an emergency solution designed to allow space in overcrowded prisons, in order to meet the conditions of the space that must be given to prisoners, in accordance with the High Court ruling.
Now that Ben-Gvir's law goes into effect this Friday, security officials are warning that the detention of wanted security and administrative persons will be canceled because there is no longer room in prisons. Senior IPS officials told Israel Hayom: "The situation is serious, it's a national crisis, a real catastrophe."
"A populist decision." MK Ben Ari, Photo: Oren Ben Hakon
MK Merav Ben-Ari (Yesh Atid), former chairman of the internal security committee that dealt with the administrative release mechanism, told Israel Hayom that "Ben-Gvir's populist and irresponsible decision to cancel the administrative release of security prisoners sentenced to up to 3 years, without giving additional options of detention facilities, 'blew up' the security prisons, and now there is no place to bring in more dangerous prisoners."
According to MK Ben Ari, "Instead of listening to the security officials, he is going for empty slogans that will cost us all lives. Ben-Gvir is a clear danger to state security."
"No more administrative abbreviation"
The Shin Bet is not the only entity warning about overcrowding in prisons. Last week, Israel Hayom reported that the IDF was recently forced to cancel critical detentions for apprehending terror suspects following a request from the Israel Prison Service due to the overcrowding of detainees in the detention facilities. Among other things, the IPS asked the military not to carry out administrative detentions, through which terrorists who are considered ticking bombs are detained prior to a potential attack.
Due to the wave of terrorism and security tensions, the IDF and Shin Bet have been acting in recent months through many administrative detentions against wanted persons, and naturally the effect of overcrowding in prisons is becoming more severe – and the phenomenon is growing.
Increasing density. Gilboa Prison (archive), photo: Gil Eliyahu/Ginny
Figures obtained by Israel Hayom show a significant jump in the number of administrative detention orders issued over the past two years. While some 2021 administrative detentions were carried out in 450, the number jumped to over 2022 in 900, with over 2023 Palestinians arrested so far in 500.
"In the end, the IDF reaches a point where it has to look at the list and say that this and that suspect are not arrested because there is no place in the prisons. It's delusional, and it's already happened several times," says a military source in frustration.
"Not on my watch." Ben Gvir, Photo: Oren Ben Hakon
Minister Ben-Gvir's response: "Indeed, according to the amendment that will come into effect on September 1, there is no longer an administrative shortening for security prisoners. I am not prepared that on my watch there will be a reduction in punishment for those who work to erase the State of Israel.
"At the same time, in light of the overcrowding and the fact that the IPS cannot handle the load, administrative shortening will be given to people who commit minor criminal offenses and white-collar offenses - the main thing is not to release terrorists. Security prisoners and security detainees will always have a place in prisons."
The Shin Bet said: "We do not comment on what is said in closed discussions."
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