Controversial legislation allows children 12 and over to be convicted and punished as terrorists..
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Of more than 7,500 Palestinians now in Israeli jails, around 700 are being held under administrative detention, Palestinian rights groups said.
Prison sentences could also be imposed on children under 14 if they are convicted of murder, attempted murder or manslaughter, states the bill, which was approved by the Knesset.
“Upon their arrival [on July 17], a USA campaign staffer and four other members of the group – all carrying US passports – were interrogated by Israeli border police about their backgrounds and political involvement”, a statement issued by the organization Tuesday said.
The violence has also killed at least 32 Israelis, two Americans, an Eritrean and a Sudanese. Most of the Palestinians killed were carrying out knife, gun or car-ramming attacks, according to Israeli authorities.
In the Tubas area where Yusef lives, more than 800 people remain with their cattle on land Israel has designated as firing ranges.
Nearly four years ago, on 23 September 2012, Israeli security forces erected a chain-link fence all along al-Ibrahimi Street, a major road in Hebron that passes close to the Tomb of the Patriarchs [al-Haram al-Ibrahimi], leaving the main road on one side of the fence, and a narrow, unpaved and rough pedestrian path on the other. The Youth Bill was backed by the senior ruling coalition party, Likud, and the Minister of Justice, Ayelet Shaked. “Youths, such as Ahmed Manasra, who engage in terror and seek the death of Jewish civilians will not be shown mercy by the law”, media quoted her as saying.
Muslims and Jews alike have been massacred in Hebron, and the city has also been the site of attacks initiated by Palestinians, during a surge of violence a year ago where the perpetrators were shot dead by Israeli authorities.
A recent incident made headlines when 13-year-old Ahmed Manasra and his 15-year-old cousin Hassan Manasra chased after two Israelis, including a minor, in Jerusalem and stabbed them.
The cousin was shot dead by security forces, while Manasra was hit by a auto as they fled.
The occupied territories have witnessed a fresh bout of tensions ever since Israeli forces introduced restrictions on the entry of Palestinian worshipers into the al-Aqsa Mosque compound in East Jerusalem al-Quds in August 2015.
According to the documents revealed by the Palestinian human rights group Adalah that operates within the Israeli state, police forces are now allowed to use lethal force as a first resort against Palestinians who throw stones, firebombs, or fireworks. “Imprisoning such young minors denies them the chance of a better future”.
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Israeli Border Police officers detain Palestinian photographer Shadi Hatem, during a protest organized by activists in support of Palestinian prisoners in the Israeli jails, in front of the Israeli Ofer prison, near the West Bank city of Ramallah, Wednesday, August 3, 2016.
