Imagine being a child on your own land, suddenly shot, detained, and forced to sign documents under military custody—documents written in a language you barely understand. This is the harsh reality Palestinian children, some as young as 12, face in Israeli military prisons. Their alleged crime? Throwing stones. Reports of detaining even 3-year-olds are not uncommon.
Save the Children reports that Israeli authorities force all minors in military custody to plead guilty, as it’s their only hope for a reduced sentence. Waiting for a trial in an Israeli prison is nothing short of a nightmare. Officials routinely shackle, torture, and threaten these children to extract confessions, leaving them with physical and psychological scars. The overcrowded prison conditions also expose them to health risks, as they are forced to share cramped spaces and bedding with many others, without sanitation supplies.
The Court System
In the West Bank, Israeli authorities arrest, prosecute, and imprison Palestinian minors and adults alike under a military system that strips them of basic rights. Meanwhile, Israeli settlers benefit from civilian and criminal legal systems, leaving Palestinians without equal protection.
Research shows that Israeli children never face adult courts, while Israeli authorities apply civilian criminal law to Palestinian children. After their arrest, many Palestinian minors endure solitary confinement, with minimal human contact and no family visitations.
Israeli officials reinstated administrative detention in 2015 after a three-year suspension. Since then, they have detained Palestinian children without charge or trial, withholding evidence from both the children and their lawyers. Such unfair and inhumane actions are condemned by UN experts who are ‘disturbed’ by this ‘abusive system.’
In East Jerusalem, Israeli law technically applies to both Palestinian and Israeli children, but DCI Palestine reports that Israeli authorities systematically strip Palestinian children of their rights from the moment of arrest to the conclusion of legal proceedings. This highlights the clear discrimination in the system.
Stone Throwing
Israeli soldiers regularly shoot, injure, and imprison Palestinian children for protesting, often with nothing more than stones in hand. For decades, Palestinians have thrown stones at Israeli military forces as a symbolic act of resistance. With nothing but slingshots and rocks, and faces covered in keffiyehs to protect themselves from tear gas, children confront heavily armed soldiers.
The keffiyeh and stone throwing have become powerful symbols of defiance for Palestinians. Despite this, in 2015, Israeli lawmakers passed a law mandating prison sentences of four to 20 years for stone-throwing incidents. Since 2021, the Israeli military has authorized soldiers to shoot Palestinians who throw stones, regardless of any immediate threat.
In Conclusion
In the West Bank, almost every adult has faced detention at least once. Since the October 7 attacks, Israeli authorities have nearly doubled the number of child arrests and detentions, with reports of increased abuse. Children’s education is disrupted, as they are barred from attending school. Israeli officials place minors under 12 on house arrest for stone throwing and later detain them when they turn 13. For children like 14-year-old Ahmad, who was released in the Israel-Hamas prisoner swap, the first thing he wanted to do was return to school.
What We Can Do
In 2015, DCI Palestine partnered with AFSC to launch the “No Way to Treat a Child” campaign. This initiative aims to end the military occupation of Palestine and stop the prosecution of Palestinian minors in military courts. Since 1991, DCI Palestine lawyers have represented Palestinian children in these courts.
The “No Way to Treat a Child” website provides updates on the situation and offers ways to take action through petitions and letters to lawmakers. You can also donate to help protect Palestinian children in the occupied West Bank.
Related videos:
Share this content:
