Supreme Court Justice Ofer Grosskopf recently made an unusual appeal to the Shin Bet during a hearing and called on them to formulate alternatives to administrative detention in the case of one of the detainees, since the purpose of administrative detention is not punishment but to prevent one agency or another.
The phenomenon of administrative detention has been making headlines in recent months. Right-wing activists claim that there has been a record number of administrative detentions this year, which they claim is unjustified. On the other hand, the Shin Bet presents a massive increase in violent activities against Palestinians, including price-tag actions and Jewish terror, and argues that this is the only way to prevent such phenomena.
At the same time, another phenomenon is taking shape – according to which alternative solutions are being found for such detentions. It was recently decided that an administrative detainee could study at my husband's pre-military preparatory school instead of continuing his administrative detention, and that he would even be able to enlist in the army. In another case, with the involvement of Samaria Council head Yossi Dagan and Samaria Rabbi Elyakim Levanon, it was decided to release an administrative detainee after he promised not to carry out any violent acts.
Documentation: Settlers attack Palestinian vehicles in Huwara, March 2023 // Photo: Arab Networks
The Supreme Court recently held a hearing on an appeal filed by Honenu members in the case of four administrative detainees, including some suspected of participating in the riot after the attack at the Ali gas station. At the hearing, Judge Ofer Grosskopf addressed ISA representatives and said that in the case of one of the detainees, Yosef Yitzhak Koskas, an alternative to administrative detention should be found.
In the appeal, the detainees, through their lawyers David Halevy and Nati Rom of Honenu, demanded that the orders against them be revoked, which they claimed were issued without trial or evidence. The judge turned to an ISA representative during the hearing and said that in Kossex's case, administrative detention was not appropriate. "With regard to this issue, an alternative will be proposed that solves the existing danger, if desired, and if not, it is at the discretion of the respondents." The Shin Bet representative replied that they would not extend the order against Cossex and were willing to consider an alternative to detention.
In his ruling, the judge wrote that after reviewing secret material, he found that there was no basis to interfere with the defense minister's determination that "the reasons of the state and public security require that all the appellants be held in administrative detention." However, he added that in Cossex's case, it was decided not to extend his detention and to find an alternative.
Attorney David Halevy said: "I welcome the current decision, which means the cancellation of administrative detention for at least one of the detainees. This decision shows that more moderate measures could have been considered from the outset instead of drastic and extreme administrative detention. The service would do well to examine a more proportionate and moderate solution in relation to the other detainees instead of administrative detention, which in my assessment achieves no goal and is perceived as a purely punitive measure."
Wrong? We'll fix it! If you find a mistake in the article, please share with us